Following a 29-26 win for the British and Irish Lions over the Wallabies that sealed a series victory with one game to play, here’s our five takeaways from the game.
The top line
The British and Irish Lions secured their first series win since 2013 as a spirited second-half performance saw them finally overcome a much-improved Wallaby team in the dying moments of the match.
Hugo Keenan popped up to finish off a move started by a thumping run from England’s Will Stuart as the Lions pressed for victory close to the Australian line and eventually found the edge of their defence to take the Lions to an unassailable 2-0 lead with one to play.
But the Wallabies played their part and didn’t make it easy for their visitors. Three tries from James Slipper, Jake Gordon, Tom Wright and three penalties from Tom Lynagh saw the Aussies build scoreboard pressure, holding the lead over the lions for some 80 odd percent of the match. Their physicality was on a different level to the powder puff efforts we saw last weekend, as Will Skelton, Rob Valetini and, latterly, Langi Gleeson changed up the Wallaby contact work to new levels.
But the Lions found a way when the match looked as if it was unravelling around them. Tries from the once again outstanding Tom Curry, Huw Jones, Tadhg Beirne, Dan Sheehan and Keenan himself overcame the power of the Wallabies and ensured that, for the first time since 1997, the Lions have secured a series with a Test match to spare.
Wallaby physicality
It was never really a question that the sheer poundage of Skelton, Valetini and others such as Angus Bell would revitalise the Wallaby effort in carry, and so it came to pass.
With Gordon having a stormer, the Australians worked primarily off nine all evening, running hard lined north to south carries, winning collision after collision and taking the ball past the Lions contact and into scramble.
Out of the ten top carriers in the match, nine were Wallabies, showing the direct nature of the Joe Schmidt game plan. Len Ikitau led the list with 14, but Harry Wilson (13) Valetini (nine) and Skelton (nine) also made some thundering dents into the Lions defence.
Once one carry was made, Gordon’s ability to recycle and to find another eager bulldozer rumbling directly off his shoulder was a feature of the Wallaby play. With Gordon ensuring that the gainline was moving forward, Lynagh had an armchair ride compared to his experience last weekend and his kicking from hand and to air was a level up from what he produced in the first Test.
However, there were always question marks over how deep Skelton and Valetini could go into the game, and when they went off, both around the 50 minute mark, so Australia’s intensity dropped off just a notch, allowing the Lions to start to leverage the contact, get a foothold back into the match and use their bench to much better effect.
Platform
The Lions can thank their set-piece as one of the biggest influences in stealing this match at the end.
A flawless lineout performance, led by the massive frame of player of the match Maro Itoje, gave Jamison Gibson-Park the freedom to exit out at will, and the Leinster half-back once again demonstrated what a brilliant exponent of kicking from the base he is. His 18 kicks amassed a massive gain of 264m, but key to his kicking strategy is the ability to get the hang time needed to get his aerial players challenging.
British and Irish Lions storm back to win series with dramatic victory over wonderful Wallabies
The scrum won the Lions three penalties and there may have been a couple more on another day, Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong started the job, but the impact of Ellis Genge and Stuart cannot be overlooked. Both England props got the better of their opposite numbers in the tight, with Stuart making a key 23m run right at the end to set up position for the Keenan try and Genge making a number of thundering carries for 15m. The collective performance of both sets of props was absolutely massive in terms of the result and it demonstrated perfectly the importance of impact from front-row forwards.
A word for Curry. His breakdown and defensive work in the first half once again defined the word relentless. 15 tackles in 55 minutes, four dominant, a try, a turnover and even a clean break once again vindicated the England openside’s selection and it’s hard to think of a player who had a bigger impact in the dark arts of this Test match. His Irish cohorts were tireless too – Jack Conan smashing 24 tackles and Beirne 12, as the Munster flanker joined Curry on the scoresheet in another impressive outing.
Relative bench impacts
The difference in the relative bench impacts were as different as night and day.
Other than Australia’s outstanding flank Carlo Tizzano, and the work of Gleeson in carry, the Wallabies struggled for any semblance of impact, becoming disjointed and losing shape in defence as changes were made.
They weren’t helped by the early introduction of Tate McDermott, a man selected to ignite the second half off the bench, as he was forced to replace the unlucky Harry Potter early on, emphasising the drawbacks of a 6-2 split when teams get injuries in the first part of games. Australia will need to examine their stocks and look for some real poundage to up their impact stocks moving forward if they’re to get anything out of this series.
For the Lions, the outstanding shift, as previously noted, came from Genge and Stuart as both defined impact. James Ryan did his best to add impetus in carry and mongrel around the breakdown, whilst in the back division, Blair Kinghorn’s introduction gave the Lions a real target for their aerial strategy, something that helped them greatly in getting field position in that nerve-wracking final quarter.
With Owen Farrell adding 13 to his Test position portfolio, he brought a calmness of thinking and a knowledge of where to play the game in the crucial close out, as the Lions bench gave them a massive advantage over Australia in those last 30 minutes.
Looking ahead
For Australia, the blueprint almost worked and they’ll need to refine their plan to do more of the same. Given the players from the FNP match have had some rest and relaxation, Joe Schmidt simply must introduce the behemoths Taniela Tupou and Lukhan Salakaia-Loto into the squad. Their power would have changed the dynamic of the drop-off the Wallabies experienced after 50 minutes, and if Schmidt is prepared to chance his arm with Seru Uru and Charlie Gamble, their ability to add direct power and aggression is Pollaclear to see.
With a few more tweaks – starting Bell and perhaps the direct and abrasive Billy Pollard at hooker, Australia may yet get something out of this series – and based upon what we saw today, they deserve that.
For the Lions, it will be a quick recce of who is fit and able to go for 80. Bundee Aki looked to be struggling late in the game, but Farrell or Sione Tuipulotu are both great options. There will be a discussion around Kinghorn too – he simply has to play, but where? James Lowe had a couple of big moments but he’s not been as sharp as the Lions would have wanted and Kinghorn could be the man to be employed on the left wing.
The key for the Lions is there must be no thought of easing off. Winning a Lions series 3-0 is a rarity – they stand on the threshold of pulling off that feat and you can bet your bottom dollar Andy Farrell and his men will be completely focused on finishing this tour unbeaten.
READ MORE: Wallabies v British & Irish Lions, AS IT HAPPENED: How the series was won in Melbourne
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