First Nations and Pasifika XV shock touring Lions
The historic selection delivered a passionate and combative performance at Melbourne's Marvel Stadium to shock the touring party, but ultimately fell just short in losing 24-19.
Representing First Nations, Fiji, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Samoa and Maori cultures, the invitational side held the unbeaten Lions to 14-14 at halftime and were unlucky not to score a third on the bell.
Hard-hitting lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto again gave Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt a timely reminder of his value ahead of the second Test at the MCG on Saturday, while prop Taniela Tupou was also rock solid in the scrum.
The First Nations and Pasifika side were on the back foot early and the signs looked ominous when NSW Waratahs winger Tristan Reilly was given a yellow-card for his tackle on debutant Darcy Graham.
With Owen Farrell captaining the Lions for the first time, the visitors crossed in the seventh minute when a Fin Smith chip kick bounced up for centre Jamie Osborne.
They doubled that score in the 10th minute when halfback Ben White fired a pass out to Graham, but the shattered Scotsman's night ended five minutes later with a leg injury.
The invitational side also had an early casualty, with Wallabies outside back Filipo Daugunu suffering a head knock while making a tackle.
But coach Toutai Kefu's men put the visitors on the back foot with their rushing defence and breakdown ferocity, with flanker Charlie Gamble a stand-out.
Reilly made amends for his early absence when he intercepted a long Lions pass to score his team's first try before Queensland flanker Seru Uru planted the ball next to the post in the 22nd minute to lock up the scoreline.
It was the first time in seven matches in Australia that the Lions weren't in front at halftime, having conceded the most points in a first half of their tour.
The four-nations outfit edged ahead in the 44th minute with Osborne bagging his second, but the home side refused to buckle despite having to call on an inexperienced bench including 21-year-old Canberra club player Jarrah McLeod.
Farrell set up his team's fourth try, dummying and offloading for Duhan van der Merwe to score and it looked like the Lions would kick away.
But with 95-Test veteran Kurtley Beale marshalling his troops, Melbourne product Rob Leota put his team back in the hunt with a 70th minute try to reduce the margin to five points.
First Nations and Pasifika continued to scrap for the match-winner but the Lions managed to hold on to keep their unbeaten record intact.
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The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
A rugby Test for the ages - and a decision that will be debated for years
It was, friends — the result aside — rugby at its very best. The second thing to celebrate was just how wonderfully the Wallabies played. I want my Australian teams to bleed for the jersey, to back themselves, to eschew the percentage play in favour of a damn-the-torpedoes, full-speed-ahead approach — and that is exactly how they played from the outset. After losing last week, our blokes started the match as heavy underdogs, criticised by former Lions coach Clive Woodward for having a 'losing mentality,' and there was a widespread feeling that we were simply outclassed. But under the captaincy of Harry Wilson, the Wallabies looked like a different team from the opening whistle. The lineouts worked. The scrums worked. Courtesy of the likes of Will Skelton and Rob Valetini coming into the pack this week, we had so much go-forward in the collisions that the Lions forwards were reeling with every clash. Loading In the backs, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Len Ikitau, Tom Wright and Max Jorgensen made break after break. With 10 minutes to go before half-time we had gone out to an 18-point lead, 23-5, courtesy of fabulous tries to James Slipper, Jake Gordon and Tom Wright - and it really looked as if not just a win but a blow-out win was on the cards! Even when the Lions came back with two tries of their own just before half-time, hope sprang eternal. Still, the Wallabies didn't back off, tackling themselves red-raw as the Lions launched raid after raid. Halfway through the second half, the Australians even had the line wide open for what might have been the winning try, only for the ball to be lost in heavy contact after Suaalii made a great break. It all came down to the final minute, with the Wallabies clinging to a 26–24 lead — only for the Lions to go over in extremis, in the corner. Many felt Lions flanker Jac Morgan's pulling down of Carlo Tizzano at a ruck just before Hugo Keenan scored, should have seen the try disallowed. Maybe. Maybe not. The ref said it was a legitimate try, and so be it. That technical loss aside, there was victory off the field in having staged such a match at the MCG — before a Lions world-record crowd of just over 90,000 — with many Victorians seizing the rare opportunity to witness a game of such global significance. With that in mind, I'll leave you with the words of Mr AFL himself, Eddie McGuire, who texted John Eales and myself immediately after the match ended. Folks, here's… Eddie!' 'What an amazing night for your code. 90,000 at the MCG! 'Record. Amazing game,' McGuire messaged. 'Not sure why we didn't get the last penalty. Ref has no idea about setting up a huge result and a big final game. Another effing tax auditor ruining the game!! 'Almost the perfect result. Still an amazing night. You should be very proud of the rugby culture. A week of joy. More please!' More to come, Eddie. It will be at the Olympic Stadium, next Saturday night. The Australians will be waiting for the Lions. They're a team that has grown before our eyes over this past week, a team to be proud of. They will be even better next week, and if there is a rugby God, this time it will go our way! Either way, the second Test was one for the ages and congrats to the British and Irish Lions and their supporters on a magnificent win.
The Australian
8 hours ago
- The Australian
Wallabies bring back Valetini, Skelton for must-win Lions Test at MCG
The Wallabies have declared they won't submit to the British & Irish Lions' physicality as they did in the first Test, and are embracing the pressure of having to win Saturday's match in Melbourne to keep the series alive. Desperate coach Joe Schmidt has recalled powerhouses Rob Valetini and Will Skelton into his starting side for the second Test, injecting the two big boppers weighing a combined 252kg in a bid to turn the tables on the Lions. 'We didn't have the intention last week, and we don't have the intention this week, of being submissive, I just think that they played on the edge really well,' Schmidt said. 'They got in amongst us, sometimes just beside us, which made it very hard to play. We're hopeful that we will be able to take that to them this week and keep them on the back foot a little bit more.' Australian fullback Tom Wright said while they're relishing the pressure to go 1-all with victory at the MCG in front of a crowd estimated to exceed 90,000 fans, they're not viewing the must-win game as a backs to the wall situation. 'All the pressure is obviously on us, that was the way you phrased that question then, and we are embracing that,' Wright said. 'Preparation for the week's been rock solid, as it has been for most of the week since I've been back in this environment with Joe, and we're not letting the external hype get the better of us. 'If we start thinking about do-or-die or backs-to-the-wall, to use your term, I think external added pressure that's probably unnecessary. Are we trying to win the game last week? Absolutely. 'Are we trying to win the same game that we're trying to play this week? For sure. Next week, are we going to try and do the same thing? Absolutely. But are we thinking that far in advance? Probably not, no. Tom Wright in action during the First Test against the British & Irish Lions. Picture:'So I know speaking for the playing group and the way that we prepare ourselves, even without the coaching staff pointing us in the right direction, that's the mentality that we're taking is like, do we want to be more aggressive and throw more punches in this game? Absolutely. 'But it's not because our backs-to-the-wall, it's just because that's how we want to play.' The addition of Valetini and Skelton, both returning from calf injuries, has led Schmidt to name a 6-2 split on the bench, with Langi Gleeson being added as backrower cover alongside Carlo Tizzano, while Tate McDermott and Ben Donaldson are the only back-ups to an unchanged starting backline from Brisbane. Hooker Matt Faessler and flanker Nick Champion de Crespigny have been dropped from the squad that lost 27-19 in Brisbane, and Andrew Kellaway drops off the bench, while Jeremy Williams moves to bench to accommodate Skelton's arrival. Rob Valetini will return from injury for the second Lions Test. Picture: Getty Valetini, the two-time John Eales medallist, can be a game-changer for the Wallabies if he plays his best. 'Everyone in the rugby circles knows what Bobby brings in particular,' Wright said. 'And then the other big fella, bigger fella that comes back for us, Will. His resume speaks for itself, a really calm head, won multiple things in the northern hemisphere. Obviously a large, larger than most frame, so we're pumped to have Will and Bobby back for sure.' Schmidt says the dynamic duo will lift the confidence of the team. 'I did think that Nick Champion de Crespigny acquitted himself incredibly well in a furnace last week making his Test debut, but the experience that Bobby brings in, and he probably brings confidence to other players as well, because of his experience and his ability to take the ball forward,' Schmidt said. Will Skelton is another huge inclusion for the Wallabies. Picture: AFP 'One of the key things with Will is he's a very calm influence. He's a big man, he's big hearted as well. Hopefully not on Saturday, but his experience and his history of being involved in successful teams, particularly with La Rochelle in Europe, I think it just gives other players confidence. 'We've got a group of players who haven't won too much in recent times, whether it's in Super Rugby or whether it's internationally. I think building confidence is an incremental thing. You've got to get small wins here and there.' Schmidt has kept Tom Lynagh and Jake Gordon as his starting halves. AUSSIE-BORN LIONS HERO RULED OUT OF SECOND TEST - Julian Linden Australian-born centre Sione Tuipulotu has been cruelly dropped from the British & Irish Lions' team to face the Wallabies in Saturday's second Test showdown at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, killing his dream of a fairytale return to the city where he was born and raised. It is a devastating setback for the powerful midfielder, who gave up on his first goal of playing for the Wallabies after he was unable to break into the team, then moved to the other side of the world to play for Scotland, where his grandmother was born. Tuipulotu has since established himself as genuine international star who scored the opening try for the Lions in last week's first Test victory over Australia in Brisbane after he was picked to start at inside centre. But he's been left off the Lions' 23-man squad altogether for game two. Sione Tuipulotu has been ruled out of the second Test with a hamstring injury. Picture: Getty The Lions' head coach Andy Farrell said Tuipulotu had a slight hamstring strain that made it difficult to pick him so he opted instead for Ireland's New Zealand-born midfielder Bundee Aki. 'When you've got a little bit of a tight hamstring, it influences how you're possibly going to go, so we made the call to go with Bundee,' Farrell said. '100 per cent (Tuipulotu) is absolutely gutted. He also knows that that's rugby, fairytales are not always written. 'Sione is a team man anyway. And it's the same with anyone who's missed out. Every single one of them has been rowing forward by putting the team first.' Farrell, who also coaches the Ireland national team, originally picked an all-Irish midfield of Aki and Garry Ringrose for this weekend, but had to make a last-minute change when Ringrose withdrew after sustaining a head knock in training. Farrell said it was a selfless act by Ringrose to notify the team about how he was feeling when he could have kept quiet and played regardless. 'With these type of things, players are getting very good at telling the truth of how they feel,' Farrell said. 'It's very easy to keep it to yourself and lie and not be honest and open. It was very big of him and the right thing to do, 100 per cent. For the team as well, not just for Garry.' Huw Jones is back in the starting line-up for the Lions. With Ringrose suddenly unavailable, Farrell recalled Scotland's Huw Jones to start at outside centre. Jones and Tuipulotu regularly play together at Glasgow Warriors and Scotland and started alongside each other in the first Test victory. But instead of sticking with the proven combination, Farrell brought in Aki, one of nine Irishmen in his starting lineup for Saturday. Farrell also selected his own son Owen, who plays for England, as one of the reserves, even though he was not picked in the original squad. As well as bringing in Aki, Ollie Chessum will start at lock after Joe McCarthy was ruled out with a foot injury while Andrew Porter was picked at loosehead prop ahead of Ellis Genge. In all, the Lions made seven changes to the side that won the first Test 27-19, three in the starting lineup and four on the bench. Knowing they can clinch the series with a game to spare if they win in Melbourne, Farrell said the Lions were hoping to create history but also bracing for a backlash from the Wallabies. Aware that the Wallabies had recalled Rob Valetini and Will Skelton and named six substitute forwards on the Australian bench, he said it was inevitable that the match would be a torrid, physical encounter. 'It is what it says on the tin. It's obvious what they're going to bring and why they're selected,' Farrell said. 'I suppose they're delighted with that and the 6-2 bench just backs that up a little bit, doesn't it? So it's not unexpected.' The Lions' towering captain Maro Itoje said he was looking forward to the battle up front, especially with the return of the giant Skelton, the biggest player on either side. 'I've played a few good years with Will, played against him a few times as well and he's a fantastic player,' Itoje said. 'He's a talisman for any side he plays in, he adds a sense of dynamism, size, power to the team. 'I'm delighted for him that he's able to play. I know he was hoping that he would get an opportunity. And it's something that we're excited about too.'
The Australian
8 hours ago
- The Australian
Wallabies face humiliation after controversial Lions Test loss
Still livid at the contentious last-minute ruling that cost them victory in the second Test against the British & Irish Lions, the Wallabies are facing the threat of total humiliation if they don't quickly move on from the incident that has divided the rugby world. While head coach Joe Schmidt was fuming that the Lions' match-winning try by Hugo Keenan wasn't ruled out because of Jac Morgan's clean out of Carlo Tizzano in the lead up, the jury is split on whether the Wallabies were robbed or their complaints are just sour grapes. While a lot of Australians think Morgan should have been penalised for making contact with Tizzano's neck, the British media – not surprisingly – have taken a very different view, and accused the Wallabies' backrower of diving. READ MORE Furious Wallabies slam non-call as great explodes at Lions robbery The brutal loss Australian rugby couldn't afford Ratings: The man 'worth two players' in Wallabies' fightback 'Tizzano clearly milked the incident, collapsing with a melodrama that could easily have persuaded some officials to chalk off Keenan's try,' British journalist Oliver Brown wrote in the UK's Telegraph. 'The reality was that Morgan's clear-out technique was blameless: he wrapped his arms legally and could not have gone any lower. By contrast, Tizzano's reaction – staggering back, clutching his head as if in mortal agony – was anything but.' Stephen Jones, a long-time critic of southern hemisphere rugby, also took aim at Tizzano, saying the referees should be applauded for seeing his actions as play-acting. 'Tizzano, unforgivably, reached back and dived out of the ruck clutching his head,' Jones wrote. 'And the officials quite correctly concluded that there was no offence.' The debate is certain to rumble on in the lead up to next weekend's final Test in Sydney. World Rugby's top brass are in town to promote the 2027 World Cup and can expect a grilling on the matter. But nothing they say will change the result. Carlo Tizzano has been accused of 'milking the incident' by UK press.. (Photo by) The history books already show the Lions won the match 29-26 to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the series and with it the chance of a rare 3-0 cleansweep, which would be an unmitigated disaster for Australian rugby. The last time the Wallabies lost 3-0 to the Lions was way back in 1904 so Schmidt is desperate for his players to come away from the series with something to show for their steady improvement. 'I think they are progressing,' Schmidt said. 'It's never linear, it always tends to ebb and flow. 'Our challenge is to try to be as consistent as we can, even within the game.' When Schmidt and his players sit down in the cold light of day to review Saturday's heartbreaking loss at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, sulking about the decision that went against them will do more harm than good. They would be better off acknowledging the painful truth that this was an epic match that both teams can be proud of but the Australians let it slip through their hands after scoring three tries inside the first half-hour to open up a commanding 18-point lead. While the Wallabies were fist pumping and backslapping each other, there was still 50 minutes left on the clock, and the Lions weren't done with yet. They held their composure to dominate the rest of the contest, outscoring the Wallabies 24-3. With the Wallabies desperately trying to hold on, the Lions just kept attacking and finished with five tries to Australia's three, including two critical scores just before halftime that cut the margin to six points at the interval and swung the momentum their way. Even through the red mist of the gut wrenching finish, Schmidt did at least concede his team had squandered a golden opportunity. 'When you build a lead of 23-5 and then that slips, that's hugely disappointing, particularly when it happens in the last play of the game,' he said. 'We are trying to build consistency. We're trying to play a brand of rugby that entertains people. And at the same time, a brand of rugby that we enjoy playing. 'I'm really proud of the effort the players put in and I'm really disappointed for them. 'That probably puts in context the comments that have been made in terms of our disappointment at the end of the game.' Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt conceded the Wallabies put themslelves in a bad position to begin with. Picture:While the Wallabies can't win the series, Schmidt said there was still plenty to play for in Sydney apart from avoiding the embarrassment of a whitewash. With Australia hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2027, the focus over the next two years will be on building a team that can compete for the game's ultimate prize. There are enough positive signs to suggest that the building blocks are there, but nothing lifts the spirits more than winning so that has to be the first priority. 'We had a number of guys who are just growing into the game really and so to stand up and deliver what they did against a collection of some of the world's best players, I was immensely proud of the effort they'd made,' Schmidt said. 'They were broken at the end of it and I think one of the things that you've got to do is you've got to keep resolve and you've got to keep going forward. 'We can't wallow in self-pity because we didn't get the result. We've got to keep trying to build the way we play, the behaviours we demonstrate, and the understanding we're trying to build of the game and how we can best play it. 'You can't get more motivated than what the players demonstrated.' Lions chasing 121-year first Not satisfied with breaking the Wallabies' hearts by clinching their three-game series with a match to spare, the British & Irish Lions are now preparing to go in for the kill in game three. And if the Lions succeed in devouring the Wallabies, the Australians can point the finger of blame at rugby league, because it was the Kangaroos that instilled the ruthless instinct in the Lions' master coach Andy Farrell. Even before they arrived in Australia, the Lions were bragging about wanting to complete the first 3-0 clean sweep against the Wallabies in 121 years and they're right on track after they stole a 29-26 victory with a controversial last-minute try at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. As the celebrations kicked off in the bowels of the MCG, the Lions' captain Maro Itoje and head coach Andy Farrell were quick to warn the Wallabies they would get no mercy in next weekend's final Test in Sydney. Coach Andy Farrell and captain Maro Itoje address the press after the Lions' series-sealing win. Picture: AP Photo/Rick Rycroft 'The first time we met was in London or Dublin, when we met Big Faz (Farrell), he made the call, he wants us to go out here and win, he wants us to win everything,' Itoje said. 'Don't get me wrong, I'm absolutely delighted with the result, but we want to go again next week.' Farrell was also bullish about his team's intentions for Sydney but did at least credit to the Wallabies for how well they played in Melbourne after losing the series opener in Brisbane. Written off as no-hopers, the Wallabies led 23-5 in the first half and held the lead for 79 minutes before the Lions snatched the win in the last play of the game. 'Fair play to them, they turned up,' Farrell said. 'They said they were going to turn up physically, but it wasn't just that. They played a great brand of rugby, whether it be their kicking game, 50-22s, et cetera, moving the ball around etc. They played a great brand of rugby.' While the Wallabies were left to rue what could have been, the Lions went straight into full party mode. Soaking up the atmosphere of playing in front of 90,000 fans they did a lap of the MCG to pose for photos with family and fans before heading to the sheds and bursting into song. At the same time Itoje and Farrell were answering questions at their post game press conference, the Lions' squad could be head belting out Status Quo's 'Rockin All Over The World.' Coach Andy Farrell celebrates with Bundee Aki (L) and Sione Tuipulotu after their series win. Picture:When it came time for the Wallabies coach and captain to front the media, they had to face their inquisition while the Lions' were singing Neil Diamond's 'Sweet Caroline.' 'This is a dream for everyone in that dressing room,' Farrell said. 'These lads have dreamt of being a British & Irish Lion all their lives,' said Farrell. 'And to get to the point where we come to the MCG, 90,000 people, with a dramatic finish like that, to win the series is what dreams are made of. 'If you're a child watching that back home do you want to be a British & Irish lion? 100%. That's the dream, that's the fairytale that these lads have wished for. So we're over the moon.' For Farrell, beating the Australians in a series ticked off one of the few items missing from his bucket list. Shane Webcke is tackled by Andy Farrell back in his rugby league days. A superstar rugby league player in his day before he turned to coaching rugby union, Farrell played for Great Britain against the Kangaroos in three Ashes' series, in 1994, 2001 and 2003, captaining his country in the last two. But he lost all three series', all in painful circumstances. In 1994 and again 2001, Britain won the Test but lost the next two to concede the series. Then in 2003, the unforgiving Kangaroos hammered the Brits 3-0. Now he has his revenge. The significance wasn't lost on Itoje, who became the first Lions' captain in 12 years to win a series anywhere in the world. 'These are one the moments in your life that you'll cherish. This will live long in the memory,' he said. 'So often in sport, you have to move on to the next thing, focus on what's next, focus on the next challenge. Every now and again, I think it's important to savour the moment. 'This has always been the goal for the results to be this way, this point in the tour. And we're just delighted, this is what dreams are made of.'
