By Martin Bayfield Former Lions and England star

The Lions won the second Test but lost the series 2-1 in NZ in 1993

Intense. That's what this Lions tour will be. The most intense rugby tour this pride of Lions will ever go on.

It's a hackneyed phrase, but rugby is a religion in New Zealand.

In Australia, rugby union is not the number one sport. It is big in South Africa, but it's such a vast place and each province is almost like a different country.

But in New Zealand everyone talks about rugby and is very knowledgeable. And they appreciate the history of rugby and the history of the Lions.

That red shirt is the stuff of legend over there, and the Lions tour is the only topic of conversation at the moment.

1993 LIONS TEST SERIES 1st (C'church): NZ 20-18 Lions 2nd (Wellington): NZ 7-20 Lions 3rd (Auckland): NZ 30-13 Lions

And it will hit the Lions as soon as they land. Everyone will want a piece of them, both on and off the pitch.

And it's not just autographs. The Kiwi fans will be desperate to meet the players and chat about rugby.

Once, on the 1993 tour, we were in a shop and the woman behind the counter must have been about 75 years old.

It was just after the first game against North Auckland, which we won 30-17, and she started to tell us where we could improve.

A winning midweek team lifts the whole party and puts pressure on the Test side

We had just had our team meeting and she basically gave us exactly the same run down we'd just had with our coaching staff, telling us how our body positions were too high, we weren't deep enough and so on.

We all thought, "Bloody hell, is there anyone in this country who doesn't know anything about rugby?"

We lost the first Test courtesy of a disputed try when Ieuan Evans and Frank Bunce went up together for a high ball lofted into our in-goal area.

Zinzan Brooke gives the All Blacks' perspective on '93

We realised that we had been too much in awe of the All Blacks and began to claw our way back.

Ultimately, we didn't trust ourselves to win and we were undone by a late Grant Fox penalty, again from a controversial decision.

The second Test wasn't the prettiest either but we turned the screw on them up front and Rory Underwood scored a stunning try after beating opposite number John Kirwan.

Underwood - "A Porsche going past a Lada"

Rory's brother Tony said afterwards that is was "like watching a Porsche going past a Lada". A bit unfair on a player like Kirwan, admittedly.

In the third Test, we made the mistake of not changing our tactics, and though we were leading after a Scott Gibbs try, they adapted better. In the end, we didn't believe in ourselves enough.

We were also a bit jaded. With a small squad of 30 there was no time to rest injuries and recuperate, so I can see why Sir Clive Woodward is taking 45 players.

The big problem facing any Lions tour party is to keep the harmony, and we were hampered by a rift with the midweek side.

They suffered some big defeats - particularly against Hawkes Bay and Waikato around the second Test - and were at times awful.

It became clear fairly early on what the Test side would be, so some players switched off and went "off tour", not performing in training and socialising at the wrong times.

It created ill feeling within the squad and that's not what you need when you're trying to beat the All Blacks. A winning midweek team lifts the whole party and puts pressure on the Test side.

Bayfield played in all three Tests in 1993

Clive and his staff will need to appeal to the players' pride and be meticulous with their communication and morale-building to make sure this doesn't happen again.

Despite the disappointment of losing the series, I had the time of my life in 1993 and met some great people. It was wonderful, too, to experience some of New Zealand - it's a beautiful country.

And you really did feel you were following in the footsteps of legendary Lions teams past.

I also witnessed the funniest thing I ever saw in my rugby career.

In a bar in Auckland late one night after the tour was over, Deano [Dean Richards] and Richard Webster staged a sumo wrestling contest.

These two big, painfully white, slightly overweight rugby players wrapped only in towels went through the whole ceremony, with all the pomp and posturing.

Jerry Guscott was Deano's second and Tony Clement was Webster's. They all took it so seriously and it ended with Webster falling down a flight of stairs.

Me, I was crying with laughter.

Martin Bayfield will be reporting regularly for this website from the Lions tour in New Zealand.