Lions’ next opponents make contact as England stars slam decision to play

Edinburgh have contacted the Lions to offer support ahead of Friday's United Rugby Championship fixture, while former England internationals Chris Ashton and Danny Care criticized the decision allowing the Lions to play following Hyron Andrews' sudden death. Andrews died at age 31 following a fall at the team hotel, yet the Johannesburg-based squad fulfilled their Champions Cup fixture against La Rochelle less than 24 hours later, suffering a 31-14 defeat.

Speaking on BBC Rugby Union Weekly, Ashton argued that EPCR leadership should have canceled the match instead of leaving the choice to grieving players. Meanwhile, Edinburgh attack coach Tim Sampson confirmed that head coach Sean Everitt reached out to the Lions and affirmed that Friday's upcoming match at the Hive will proceed as planned.