Indomitable Lions claw back some credibility
WARREN GATLAND believes his Lions’ rumble through the New Zealand rugby jungle has taken a massive step forward two weeks out from the start of the Test series against the All Blacks.
Although his Lions failed to score a try – leaving them with just two five-pointers across 240 minutes of tour play – their defence was much improved in the 12-3 win. After leaking three tries in the midweek defeat to the Blues in Auckland, they shut out Super Rugby champions-elect Crusaders whose only score was a 25th-minute penalty.
Gatland had been on a war footing all week following renewed criticism of his onedimensional ‘Warrenball’ style coming after disappointing performances produced by two entirely different Lions starting XVs against the parttime Barbarians and the Blues.
But in silencing the highflying Crusaders, who had scored on average 37 points in their 14-match unbeaten Super Rugby run, tour 2017 has now established credibility.
The Lions will now look to generate further momentum in Dunedin, Rotorua and Hamilton in other warm-up matches before the defining Test business starts on June 24 in Auckland, the city where they were ambushed by a late counter-attacking Blues flourish last Wednesday.
‘We improved in our defence, that off-loading and some of
the line speed was excellent,’ said Gatland following the second victory of the tour. ‘That is just time together. It’s a like a club side coming together in preseason, getting a couple of games under its belt and you know that more time together the better you’ll get.
‘It has definitely felt like that. This team was outstanding in training on Friday, looked sharp, and I knew there would be a performance because they have had time to gel.
‘The result was pretty important for us,’ remarked the Lions coach.
Owen Farrell kicked the tourists into a 13th-minute lead they were never to lose at AMI Stadium, Gatland’s charges maintaining their cool despite the setback of losing two players – Stuart Hogg, who bizarrely collided with Conor Murray’s elbow, and Jonathan Davies – to failed head injury assessments in the opening half hour.
Both will now follow the same return-to-play protocols that Dan Biggar has been undergoing since the blow to the head he shipped last Wednesday against the Blues. Failure of yesterday’s concussed pair to be ready to face the Maori next Saturday will heighten intrigue about the potential Eden Park Test selection as both Hogg and Davies arrived in New Zealand in pole position to secure Test starts.
The pecking order to face the back-to-back word champions was further confused by the manner in which Davies’ loss led to Johnny Sexton coming off the bench and
pushing Farrell out to inside centre, a 10-12 combination Gatland had said pre-tour he wasn’t interested in pursuing as the latter was only being considered as a fly-half option. The pair hadn’t even run in this 10-12 combination at training.
They didn’t falter but they didn’t sparkle either, the discovery of an attacking threat that consistently delivers the goods has become Gatland’s greatest challenge in the 13-day countdown to the eagerly awaited Auckland series opener.
As five-try Ireland recognised by going all out to blitz New Zealand last November, the Lions need to get over the whitewash if they are to humble the world’s best side in their own back yard.
‘We are creating some chances and need to get better. The more time we are together, the more the players get used to and familiar with the voices and hopefully we do finish those chances… we are creating them – we need to get better at them.’
Gatland started with four fresh Ireland starters in his latest XV, with another three entering the fray off the bench in Christchurch, and there was praise from the coach in the aftermath of a valuable win for back row pair Peter O’Mahony and Sean O’Brien, along with half-backs Conor Murray and sub Sexton, the busiest of the 41 players on tour as it was his third appearance in a week.
‘Our game management improved and it looked promising from some individuals. He [Murray] was definitely one of them.’