CONOR THE GREAT
Henry praises Murray the world-beater as Lions end Kiwi sneers
THE HASTY shift in Kiwi attitudes towards Warren Gatland’s Lions accelerated yesterday when Sir Graham Henry hailed Conor Murray as the world’s best scrum-half.
From his vantage point as a World Cup-winning former All Blacks coach, who took charge of the Lions in 2001, Henry recognised the significance of the Munster man’s towering contribution to this mood-changing victory.
The Lions made a short journey south to prepare for tomorrow’s clash with the Highlanders in buoyant spirits, after knocking over the Super Rugby leaders 12-3 in Christchurch.
Looking back, game three may be seen as a watershed. Gatland’s side had supreme control. Their high-intensity defence shut down one of the most prolific attacking line-ups in the southern hemisphere and their shrewd kicking put the home side under siege.
Local bleating about the referee or the lack of tries could not disguise the fact that the Lions never looked like losing, despite pre-match forecasts.
Murray toyed with the Crusaders by unleashing a sustained and effective aerial onslaught. Behind an aggressive visiting pack, he dictated the shape of the game, in tandem with half-back partner Owen Farrell — whose four penalty kicks clinched the win.
Lions No 9 Murray reacted with measured euphoria, saying: ‘It’s a good night, a good performance and something to build on. Winning was the important thing.
‘A couple of days ago, we lost and there was criticism. Now we’ve won, people will be bigging us up, but we won’t fool ourselves. There’s stuff to work on.
‘ There were a few slip- ups or turnovers that the All Blacks would finish off. Because we won doesn’t take the pressure off. We’re going back at it again on Tuesday.’
For much of the second half it was as if Murray had joined Farrell in a Saracens line-up. The emphasis was on defensive line- speed, stifling pressure and territorial control. Both called the tune with precision and composure either side of Johnny Sexton — who had replaced Jonathan Davies and offered signs that his form is on the rise again.
‘We managed thehe game well,’ said Murray.ay. ‘We knew what we were trying to do. It was really positive inn terms of game- management, opportunities created and defence. Johnny came on early and obviously the relationship is there. Playing a bit more with h Owen is great too.’ ’
Of his own kicking ing display, begrudgingly ingly praised by Crusaderssaders head coach Scott Robertson,Robertson Murray sought to give credit to the Lions pack, saying: ‘They were very good, in laying a platform.
‘You are kicking on your own terms. People go after your breakdown when you’re trying to kick and they made that solid. I don’t think we got shoved off a ball, in terms of counter-rucking, all night. I could kick with relatively little pressure. Fantastic.’
The main criticism of these Lions is that they are not scoring tries. They managed one in the opener, one in defeat against the BBlues five days aago and none on Saturday. MMost Kiwis feel GatGatland’s men do not hhave a hope in hell againstag the All Blacks in tthe three-Test series, if they cannot score points in increments of five or seven, rather than three. That is undoubtedly true but the tourists are taking comfort that the over- riding deficiency at present is their finishing. Amid talk of a missing X-factor, the Lions create chances regularly, as illustrated by the danger posed by Anthony Watson. Asked about the dearth of tries, Murray said: ‘It’s something we’ll look to improve but the fact we are making line-breaks, busting teams and counter-attacked well off a few kick receipts is really pleasing. If we weren’t making line-breaks you would be more worried. Hopefully we’ll start finishing a few.’
Make no mistake, this result will reverberate around New Zealand. It will also ignite British and Irish hope, while alerting the All Blacks to the prospect of an almighty tussle when the teams first collide in Auckland on Saturday week.
Suddenly, it feels as if the finetuning for the Tests will continue from a position of strength, while the Lions have earned respite from the sneering that stalked them on the first week of this tour.
Head injuries to Davies and Stuart Hogg were an unfortunate consequence of the win but the casualty count has been mercifully low. Gatland and his assistants have an array of options to consider in most positions up front, along with the comfort of enjoying dominant work in lineout and breakdown against the Crusaders.
The scrum creaked though, so that may have a bearing on the tight-five selection for the game against the Maori in Rotorua on Saturday — when the Test XV is likely to be deployed en masse.
Midfield and the back three remain areas of uncertainty. Those will be the final pieces in the jigsaw.
Yet, the debate over personnel options does not appear so onerous after this result.
The Lions have gained belief. And momentum. And respect. The tour has come alive.