WE’LL GET KILLED IF WE’RE NOT RUTHLESS
Lions stay focused as scale of the task in Auckland hits home
THE morning after the wondrous night before, the Lions had far clearer heads than most of their delirious fans — which meant the tourists were already recognising how they could wreck their own shot at immortality.
What happened at the Cake Tin in Wellington on Saturday was an epic occasion which claimed an instant place in rugby folklore. It shook the game’s stale hierarchy and prompted an outpouring of British and Irish euphoria in New Zealand’s capital city.
But once the dust had settled on the visitors’ historic fightback win, which propelled this series towards a classic decider in Auckland in five days, there was commendable perspective from the Lions.
Instead of revelling in their feat, they were focusing on the shortcomings which could undermine their quest for ultimate glory at Eden Park.
In particular, the Lions were acknowledging the fact their habit of giving away penalties could come back to haunt them.
Warren Gatland’s squad are enjoying a break from training before beginning their countdown to the third Test, but even while they rest weary bodies, their minds will be focused on the urgent need to break bad habits.
Failure to do so will shatter any hopes of doing what only the 1971 Lions have done — winning a series in this hostile territory.
Indiscipline was a glaring issue in Wellington and asked about it yesterday Graham Rowntree, the Lions’ forwards coach, said: ‘We have got to sort it out because it is going to kill us. We can’t be doing this.
‘We can’t lose a Test series on the back of some stupid penalties. That would be unacceptable. How do you live with that for the rest of your life?’
If necessary, the Lions coaches are prepared to drop players if they think it is the only effective course of action.
‘If that is what it takes, Gats has shown he is not afraid of doing things like that,’ said Rowntree. ‘But it is not as if it is the same offenders. We will be very frank and objective with the lads. The pictures are undeniable. That will be a big theme of the week.’
The post-mortem must be ruthless, from a position of relative strength, now that the series has been squared and the All Blacks are on the back foot.
Putting aside how Sonny Bill Williams’s deserved first-half red card impacted on this thunderous contest, the truth is that the 14-man home side would have won if Beauden Barrett, who kicked all 21 points for his side, had not missed three routine penalty shots.
Having been given a numerical advantage, the Lions were in grave danger of squandering the opportunity presented to them.
They had dominated the game when it was 15 v 15, but became headless and reckless, especially in the third quarter when they found themselves nine points adrift. Six penalties were conceded by Gatland’s men from the 44th to the 57th minutes. It went like this. Maro Itoje was caught offside twice. Conor Murray was collared for a high tackle. Mako Vunipola was penalised for a late hit on Barrett and then sin-binned for a forearm smash on the fly-half, as he cleared him out of a ruck.
Then Sam Warburton was caught offside at a lineout. All composure had been lost and on just about any other day, the Lions would have paid a heavy price.
Rather than lapse into triumphalism, they were quick to recognise the problem.
The challenge now is to replicate the primal intensity of their work in the Cake Tin, while smoothing over the rough edges which so nearly saw their dreams turn to dust.
Alun Wyn Jones delivered a stirring riposte to the critics who damned the decision to retain him in the starting XV, then addressed how the Lions must learn how to thrive on this particular knife-edge.
Asked if the British and Irish players would be able to raise their intensity further, while also staying on the right side of the laws, the Welsh lock said: ‘Yeah, I don’t see why not.
‘Sometimes it’s easier not to try as hard and I think those penalties were us trying too hard because we knew we were in the ascendancy in the first half.
‘We’ll look at those penalties and certain areas where we feel we probably can get a bit better. On the whole, the performance wasn’t complete, but we’ll patch those areas up where we need to and obviously they’re going to be an All Blacks team chomping at the bit next week.’
Aside from the discipline equation, the Lions will have to improve their tactical kicking, but their defence was good, their physicality was transformed from the under-powered effort seven days earlier and they took their try- scoring chances clinically in the superb final-quarter fightback. On a filthy night, two openings led to two tries, in the 60th and 69th minutes.
When they finally had a platform to operate on, the 10-12 alliance of Johnny Sexton and Owen Farrell made a telling impact.
They combined, with slick assistance from Elliot Daly and Liam Williams, to send Anthony Watson bursting clear on the right flank on the hour — and the rapid raid ended with Taulupe Faletau blasting through Israel Dagg to touch down on the opposite wing.
Eleven minutes from time, Sexton’s cleverly timed pass released Jamie George on the charge into the home 22 and Murray darted over from the subsequent ruck. Farrell converted from a tricky angle and then sent the Red Army into raptures with his match-winning penalty at the death.
The scenes were remarkable to behold as the visiting players took the acclaim of their supporters after referee Jerome Garces had brought an end to the conflict.
They savoured the moment but soon resolved that it wasn’t enough. Lowering the colours of these near-invincible All Blacks in their own country stands comparison with anything the Lions have done, but that won’t suffice. The tourists will not just settle for a gallant series.
They want to go where very few of their predecessors have gone before, which is why they will forensically dissect this historic and heroic victory as if it was a dismal defeat.