• Players expected to lose one or two kilos apiece
• Barbarians game to be stopped four times for drink breaks
While some people like it hot, there are limits. When the British & Irish Lions first announced they would be stopping off in the Far East en route to Australia they knew Hong Kong might be steamy, but Saturday's opening fixture against the Barbarians is threatening to give a whole new literal meaning to the term "warm-up game".
With forecast humidity of between 80-90% and temperatures above 31C, conditions could hardly be more extreme for a high-profile game of rugby. The game will be stopped twice in each half for drinks breaks and ice vests will be used to try and cool down players' body temperatures during the interval. Roast Lion is one of the few dishes not regularly found on the lunch menu in these parts, but there could be lots around by the final whistle.
In training some players lost 3-4kg in a single hour's training session, with the heftier tight forwards like Wales's Adam Jones finding the experience particularly uncomfortable. Jones has even been talking about shaving off his trademark shaggy hair and beard but the Lions medical staff are confident that, with proper rehydration, they can limit the players' individual weight loss to a kilo or two apiece.
It will, even so, be hard work, with the Wales centre-cum-doctor Jamie Roberts acknowledging conditions would be totally "alien" to both sides. "I only sat my medical finals two months ago so it certainly doesn't make me an expert but dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and overheating are all potential risks," Roberts said. "It will be very demanding on the body and the boys are very aware it's going to be tough.
"Those water breaks are going to be very important but they host the sevens and plenty of other rugby here every year and all the players get through that all right. There are risks every time you play rugby. These conditions are obviously going to be quite alien but, hopefully, the water breaks will help the players and the spectacle."
Adverse weather is not an entirely new phenomenon on a Lions tour. As England's Peter Wheeler famously wrote on a postcard home from New Zealand in 1977: "It only rained twice last week – once for three days, the other time for four." In such circumstances it can be hard to concentrate on playing rugby but the Lions management have made it clear that they expect their team to hit the ground running, regardless of conditions.
Whether the game amounts to much more than a gentle loosener depends to a large extent on the Barbarians, so disappointing at Twickenham last Sunday, but the Lions assistant coach Andy Farrell wants his team to "keep their foot on the gas and be ruthless" regardless of the scoreboard.
"They aren't thinking about heat, exhaustion – they are thinking about rugby. They are in brilliant nick and the beauty of the week in Wales and the week in Ireland means we have been able to condition them."
He also anticipates that the Barbarians, led by Italy's Sergio Parisse, will not be waving the Lions through. "I've absolutely no doubt with the side that they've picked that they will perform really well on Saturday. They could be somewhere else with their families but they chose to be here to play against us."
Roberts, similarly, does not believe it will be an easy romp. "After the result against England [40-12] it wouldn't surprise me if they played a tighter game with a bit more structure. I worked under Dai Young at the Blues for many years and I know the way he likes his teams to play. He'll have been very hurt by that outcome last weekend and we'll see a reaction. The calibre of Barbarian player is always very high. We're aware of that threat and will have to raise our game."