He also knows what it takes to beat them, having won five of those games, although he did lose out in the 2007 Rugby World Cup final in Paris.
And nothing surprised him about the 28 man squad announced by Springbok coach Peter de Villiers on Monday night.
"There were no surprises in their squad, but that was expected. If it isn't broken, don't fix it," said Vickery
"I'm sure they will be reasonably confident in their ability to play any style of game. They are a very good team with a very strong pack of forwards.
"The level of expectation is going to rise from this game onwards because there was so much going on in South African up to last weekend with the Bulls playing in the Super 14 final and then the announcement of the Springbok squad.
"Now the focus will be firmly on the Lions and the Test series and it is up to us to not just talk about what we can do, but to make sure we do it on the field."
That will start with the game against the Golden Lions on Wednesday night at Coca Cola Park, a game which Vickery knows will be a different challenge to the opening fixture.
"It will be a huge step up for us - a huge step up in the team we are playing and in the environment in which we will be playing," he said.
"Everything is going to build and build from here. There is no bigger thing than the Lions coming to your shores.
"We are going to embrace the challenge and do our very best and, whatever happens, make sure that when we return home people are proud of what we've done."
