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Lions victory sets up a winner-takes-all finale
CONOR MURRAY celebrated his second win over the All Blacks in little over eight months as the Lions matched Ireland’s achievment in Chicago last November and claimed a precious victory in Wellington.
And the 28-year-old from Limerick is adamant that the Lions’ trip to the South Island today can make the tour, not break it as happened to Ireland in 2012.
Five years ago, a late Dan Carter drop goal denied Declan Kidney’s team a draw and possibly more in Christchurch in the second match of their three-Test series.
Ireland then took off to the New Zealand adventure capital for a few days’ rest and relaxation, only to wind up on the wrong side of a 0-60 third Test trouncing by a vengeful All Blacks in Hamilton the following Saturday.
Murray, though, insists that the Lions’ stay in Queenstown from Sunday to Wednesday evening will be just the tonic to recharge exhausted batteries ahead of the decisive third encounter rather than a distraction that could leave them vulnerable to the revenge-seeking Kiwis who will spend their entire week lying in wait in Auckland for the Eden Park decider.
‘We all know how hard it is to even get in this position,’ said Murray, the Lions’ second try-
scorer in their compelling 24-21 win over a 14-man All Blacks.
‘It’s important to switch off, relax and recover. People rarely get to be in this position, 1-1 going into the last Test. Everyone is going to be rolling behind each other. We just want to give it our best shot.
‘Mentally, we’re going to be thinking about this game all week but the next few days is about rest and recovery,’ Murray continued.
‘It’s nice to think it’ll be a bit quieter down in Queenstown, to get away from the bubble and then rev up and go for it,’ he added, unaware that numerous Lions fans will be following the squad south even though there is no midweek match to play.
‘Really? Maybe not, same as normal then,’ the Munster man said with a laugh.
No one expected the Lions to be celebrating as their tour spilled into a third month in New Zealand, the tourists arriving on May 31 and being made massive underdogs for this July 1 second Test after losing 15-30 last week in Auckland.
However, they came from 9-18 behind to win with a final quarter blitz, outscoring the All Blacks 15-3.
‘We’re very proud to be in this group,’ enthused Murray, swigging a Coke and eating a bar to restore sapped energy.
‘We stuck together and showed a lot of character to stay in the fight. A lot of stuff didn’t go our way, particularly discipline… but we dug in and came out the right end.
‘It’s awesome we have levelled the series and go into next week with a bit of a pep in our step.
‘They’re going to be hurting, aren’t they?’ he continued.
‘They will have a response and they are at home in Eden Park. It’s going to be a massive challenge. We’ll enjoy [the win] and appreciate what we have done, but everyone’s looking forward to beginning work and getting as well prepared for next week in trying to take an opportunity.’