Lions will keep 'chests up and crack on'
Tom Curry says the British and Irish Lions must be prepared to have "tough conversations" in the wake of Friday's defeat by Argentina in Dublin. The Lions' hopes for a buoyant send-off before their Australian tour were spoiled by an enterprising Pumas outfit, who deservedly won 28-24 at Aviva Stadium. With the Lions now looking ahead to their tour opener against Western Force on Saturday in Perth (11:00 BST), Curry has called on the squad to "step up" and use Friday's loss as motivation to improve. "I have been in these situations before and we have got to pull tighter, it is the only way," said the 27-year-old England back row."I feel like this group has taken so many steps off the field. I have not got a bad word to say about anyone. "Everyone has been pulling in the right direction, especially the lads who came in this week, so when something goes against us we have got to keep our chests up and crack on with each other. "We have to have the tough conversations. I am not going to say it is going to be a party, we don't need that. But we have got to pull tight and hit the ground running when it comes to training."
The Lions scored tries through Bundee Aki and Tadhg Beirne, either side of a penalty try, but Andy Farrell's side lacked a cutting edge when they entered Argentine territory.And Curry, who started all three Tests against South Africa in 2021, said the players must take responsibility for their "own performances and how excited" they became on the ball."That is the really annoying thing because on the flip side it's really exciting because we do have our hands on the ball and are in great spots," said the Sale flanker. "But come on, we need to take personal responsibility when we have it."Despite Friday's defeat, Curry described this year's Lions experience so far as "sick" after the Covid-hit series against the Springboks four years ago. "It's nice being in Dublin and people aren't booing you," he said. "I think that's a cool thing. We speak a lot about respect with our own team-mates."We've only got six weeks together. Respect is so hard to earn but so easy to lose and I think it's really important, like I said, that every session and meeting we turn up and push in the right direction."
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