Lions and Scotland doctor James Robson has called for a radical overhaul in the way rugby players are treated over witnessing his most brutal series yet.

Robson has been on five tours with the Lions but the 2-1 series defeat to the Springboks at times resembled a last-man standing competition with four Lions players going off injured in the second Test.

And Robson maintains future Lions tours will need to give the squad far more preparation time.

He said: "I do have concerns going forward about the number of matches we do subject our players to in the northern hemisphere.

"I would have to say this has been the most physical tour, the most physical Test matches I have been involved in. I think we are reaching a level where the players have got too big for their skill levels.

"I hope that in the future the Lions will get a little more lead-in time because the time we had for preparation with the players, and the data we collected, allowed us to develop programmes of rehabilitation, and hopefully that helps us to keep players on tour for longer.

"Personally I would like a slightly longer tour with less frequent games. Maybe it should be eight games over eight weeks."