The Lions held off a late Chiefs surge to claim a 36-32 win in Hamilton tonightThe Chiefs seemed intent on increasing their degree of difficulty during today's encounter with the Lions in Hamilton.
All too often their own worst enemy at home against the Lions, Dave Rennie's side fell to an unexpected 36-32 loss in a game less appealing than the scoreline suggested.
Perhaps the Chiefs' task had appeared too straightforward - an afternoon kickoff on a dry track at FMG Stadium and an opponent who had struggled past the Sunwolves in week one. Whatever the reason, the Chiefs were determined to add a layer or three of adversity to their challenge.
They scrummaged poorly throughout the match, heard the whistle of referee Andrew Lees much more often than they would have liked, and spotted the Lions a couple of handy leads.
The second of those provided the ultimate test - overhauling an 11-point deficit with 10 minutes to play - and it was a test they barely failed to pass.
After Brad Weber sniped around the outside of a ruck to pull the Chiefs within four, a rolling Chiefs pack were brought down inches from the tryline in the final minute, leaving all the good work from last week's win over the Crusaders to be squandered.
The triumphant attacking play that produced that victory was lacking far too often today. Aside from a bright start and a double-strike that produced the lead midway through the second half, the Chiefs were ineffectual in possession.
Instead, it was the home side's missteps that were commonplace. The Chiefs were unusually unsettled with ball in hand, guilty of pressing instead of showing patience and ultimately paying the price.
Their issues weren't entirely of their own making, though. The Lions' defence, having suffered early, began to forecast their opponents' every move and excelled at the contact area to win turnover ball.
And at the heart of it all was the scrum. The Lions were over-powering, while the Chiefs pack stuttered for the second straight week.
Their struggles prevented the hosts from enjoying enough front-foot ball and produced far too many penalties, with the eighth of the first half allowing the Lions to lead by double digits at the break.
Buoyed by a half that went about as well as they could have hoped, the Lions attacked more expansively as the game wore on, soon scoring a superb try through Courtnal Skosan. And the South African side would have been further boosted when the Chiefs lost Brodie Retallick to injury with plenty of time still on the clock.
But the two sides' moods then switched in the blink of an eye, with the Chiefs' double-strike offering a tantalisingly brief display of their attacking menace. First a turnover sparked a rapid break and saw Charlie Ngatai link brilliantly with Damian McKenzie, then a simple but effective set move saw Aaron Cruden slip James Lowe through an inside channel.
The Lions were unbowed, however, and continued to spread the ball well through the hands, stretching the Chiefs defence from side to side and creating sufficient space for Warren Whitely and Ruan Combrinck to eventually decide the match.
Chiefs 32 (T. Sanders, D. McKenzie, J. Lowe, B. Weber tries; D. McKenzie 2 pens, 3 cons)
Lions 36 (M. Marx, C. Skosan, W. Whitely, R. Combrinck tries; E. Jantjies 4 pens, 2 cons)
HT: 11-19
