Lions one win from ending wait – 5 things we learned from first Test
The sense of anticlimax at the final whistle contrasted starkly with the pre-match buzz around Suncorp Stadium. A gulf in class between the rivals had been exposed during the 42 minutes it took the Lions to canter out of sight and now anything other than an emphatic series whitewash will be seen as failure.
Andy Farrell's men were able to butcher a host of chances and take their foot off the gas after Dan Sheehan crossed early in the second half, yet still be streets ahead. A long couple of weeks awaits the Wallabies.
The term coined by Sir Ian McGeechan to describe a special breed of player who rises to the occasion on the biggest stage was typified by Tom Curry, the full-throttle England flanker who terrorised Australia in contact and at the breakdown.
Described as a 'machine' by Andy Farrell, Curry shrugged off his indifferent form in previous tour matches to set the physical tone from the moment he pulverised James Slipper in the opening seconds.
Just a fraction behind him were Tadhg Beirne and Tadhg Furlong, who also fully justified why they were picked on reputation.
For periods of the first half, Finn Russell cast a spell on the home defence. His range of passing released team-mates, created openings and set-up tries to leave former Lions fly-halves Dan Biggar and Ronan O'Gara purring in the commentary box.
If Australia had a plan to take him out of the game, it clearly did not work as the Scotland ringmaster cut loose behind a dominant pack.
Fresh from steering Bath to the treble, Russell is operating at the peak of his powers and, on current form, is the best 10 in the game.
Apart from the failure to crush the Wallabies, thereby breaking their spirits heading into the second Test, Farrell will be most concerned about his wings.
James Lowe continued the dismal form he has shown all tour while Tommy Freeman made too many wrong decisions game and both would be fretting over keeping their places if there were strong alternatives.
However, Mack Hansen is struggling with a foot injury and Duhan van Merwe's defensive shortcomings have been exposed repeatedly ever since the curtain raiser against Argentina.
Blair Kinghorn was seen as the first-choice full-back but with Hugo Keenan proving solid enough in the first Test, the Scot could be picked on the wing if he recovers from his knee injury.
The return of powerful forwards Will Skelton and Rob Valetini cannot come soon enough for Australia. Having missed the first Test with calf injuries, they have been given the all-clear for the attempt to level the series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Skelton's sheer physical presence will prevent the Wallabies from being bullied in quite the same way, while Valetini provides a destructive carrying option.
It is upon their availability and the fight shown in the final 30 minutes at Suncorp Stadium that Australia's hopes rest.
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South Wales Guardian
an hour ago
- South Wales Guardian
Finn Russell warns Lions want to ‘finish on a high' with a series whitewash
The rivals delivered an all-time classic in the second Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground but it was Andy Farrell's men who held their nerve to emerge 29-26 winners. Now they are chasing the 100 per cent record Down Under that Farrell set as a pre-tour target – an achievement that has not been managed since the 1927 visit to Argentina. Russell, who started the celebrations wearing a chocolate garland given to some of the players by Sione Tuipulotu, views the looming Sydney Olympic Park showdown as a must win occasion. 'Everyone here has been gunning for this for their whole career. To get to the Lions is one thing and then to get a series win is another,' the Scotland fly-half said. 'This is my third tour and I've not won one so it's special to get this, bringing four nations together to be a family for five, six weeks. 'So to get the series is amazing, but the job's still not done yet. We need to go and try and finish it off. Even though we've got the series, we want to finish on a high. Everyone wants to play in that game.' Russell has been a key figure in the Lions' first series triumph since 2013, forging an influential half-back partnership with Jamison Gibson Park that has been among the tourists' greatest strengths. On current form the best fly-half in the game, the 32-year-old is finally getting the accolades that his talent deserves after piloting Bath to Gallagher Premiership, Challenge Cup and Premier Cup success in the recent club season. 'I've learned another style of rugby at Bath. It's a different style that's about getting control back because of the backs that we have to launch,' he said. 'It's changed the way I look at the game a little bit. On Saturday, we had a couple of calls on their 10 metre line and I'm looking at kick plays rather than launching straight away. 'I'm loving my rugby right now. Some of the boys might say it's the most confident I've been and it's my best rugby, which might be true, it might not. 'I've not won much in my career so to have won the titles at Bath and now this, it's amazing, it's so special.'
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Finn Russell warns Lions want to ‘finish on a high' with a series whitewash
Now they are chasing the 100 per cent record Down Under that Farrell set as a pre-tour target – an achievement that has not been managed since the 1927 visit to Argentina. Lions fly-half Finn Russell (second right) is tackled during the second Test win over Australia in Melbourne (David Davies/PA). Russell, who started the celebrations wearing a chocolate garland given to some of the players by Sione Tuipulotu, views the looming Sydney Olympic Park showdown as a must win occasion. 'Everyone here has been gunning for this for their whole career. To get to the Lions is one thing and then to get a series win is another,' the Scotland fly-half said. 'This is my third tour and I've not won one so it's special to get this, bringing four nations together to be a family for five, six weeks. 'So to get the series is amazing, but the job's still not done yet. We need to go and try and finish it off. Even though we've got the series, we want to finish on a high. Everyone wants to play in that game.' Russell has been a key figure in the Lions' first series triumph since 2013, forging an influential half-back partnership with Jamison Gibson Park that has been among the tourists' greatest strengths. On current form the best fly-half in the game, the 32-year-old is finally getting the accolades that his talent deserves after piloting Bath to Gallagher Premiership, Challenge Cup and Premier Cup success in the recent club season. 'I've learned another style of rugby at Bath. It's a different style that's about getting control back because of the backs that we have to launch,' he said. Hugo Keenan, scorer of the try that won the second Test and clinched a series win for the Lions over Australia, celebrates with team-mates at the MCG (David Davies/PA). 'It's changed the way I look at the game a little bit. On Saturday, we had a couple of calls on their 10 metre line and I'm looking at kick plays rather than launching straight away. 'I'm loving my rugby right now. Some of the boys might say it's the most confident I've been and it's my best rugby, which might be true, it might not. 'I've not won much in my career so to have won the titles at Bath and now this, it's amazing, it's so special.'
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Finn Russell warns Lions want to ‘finish on a high' with a series whitewash
Finn Russell insists the British and Irish Lions have arrived in Sydney for the final week of their Australia tour intent on completing a series whitewash over the Wallabies. The rivals delivered an all-time classic in the second Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground but it was Andy Farrell's men who held their nerve to emerge 29-26 winners. Now they are chasing the 100 per cent record Down Under that Farrell set as a pre-tour target – an achievement that has not been managed since the 1927 visit to Argentina. Russell, who started the celebrations wearing a chocolate garland given to some of the players by Sione Tuipulotu, views the looming Sydney Olympic Park showdown as a must win occasion. 'Everyone here has been gunning for this for their whole career. To get to the Lions is one thing and then to get a series win is another,' the Scotland fly-half said. 'This is my third tour and I've not won one so it's special to get this, bringing four nations together to be a family for five, six weeks. 'So to get the series is amazing, but the job's still not done yet. We need to go and try and finish it off. Even though we've got the series, we want to finish on a high. Everyone wants to play in that game.' Russell has been a key figure in the Lions' first series triumph since 2013, forging an influential half-back partnership with Jamison Gibson Park that has been among the tourists' greatest strengths. On current form the best fly-half in the game, the 32-year-old is finally getting the accolades that his talent deserves after piloting Bath to Gallagher Premiership, Challenge Cup and Premier Cup success in the recent club season. 'I've learned another style of rugby at Bath. It's a different style that's about getting control back because of the backs that we have to launch,' he said. 'It's changed the way I look at the game a little bit. On Saturday, we had a couple of calls on their 10 metre line and I'm looking at kick plays rather than launching straight away. 'I'm loving my rugby right now. Some of the boys might say it's the most confident I've been and it's my best rugby, which might be true, it might not. 'I've not won much in my career so to have won the titles at Bath and now this, it's amazing, it's so special.'
