Even 'Bone Collector' is skating on thin ice at Lions: 'Days of reputation picks are gone'

He donned a Springbok jersey on 43 occasions and his fearsome physique led to him being dubbed "The Bone Collector", but Willem Alberts is - by default - already skating on thin ice at Ellis Park.

The evergreen 38-year-old veteran makes a return for Saturday's URC meeting with Ulster as he bolsters a Lions pack that has earned rave reviews following a brilliant three-match tour that led to three victories.

However, he won't be entrusted with his role as senior statesman if he's not going to add value in the next few weeks for, as Lions defence coach and Alberts' former Bok teammate Jaque Fourie warns, the days of the team making selections on reputation only are long gone. 

It's a bullish and refreshing stance, made easier by the fact that the Lions' core of youngsters have taken the lead in driving their side's encouraging improvement.

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"It's good to have Willem back, he's been out of the game for quite a while now," Fourie said on Thursday.

"It's always beneficial to have that experience in your team, especially with the young guys around. Players of his stature have a way of calming them down. We're looking forward to seeing how he'll go.

"[But] we're at the stage where we're in the second year of our project and now it's really all about performance. If you don't perform, the next guy will step up to the plate if he gets an opportunity.

"All the young guys that have been given a chance this season have generally grabbed it with both hands and made it work for them.

"Gone are the days that we just stick to someone who isn't doing his work. So you either do it or we get the next guy to do it for you."

15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12