My predictions in rugby are a little hit-and-miss to put it
nicely. I’d like to think that I have
better foresight than, say, Jeremy Guscott, who consistently seems to be
playing a game of opposites, but I’m not exactly Mystic Meg. But I am proud to say that one of my many ‘prophecies’
has come to pass – although, as a fan of the Lions, it was a bitter sweet
moment.
Actually, it was just a bitter moment. The Lions usually lose a couple of games – at
least – every tour, but it’s still frustrating when it happens and even more so
when it’s done in the manner of a disorganised school team. Which, in Tuesday’s case, was understandable,
considering that 2 of the players had just enjoyed a 36 hour trip from Argentina,
one had popped over from a holiday in the USA and the other had come out of
retirement and flew in from the land of the rising sun. Now, if there’s a lesson to be learned here,
it’s this: if you think you’re in with a
shout of getting called up for the Lions in case of injury, go on holiday to
where the Lions are touring. Preferably
in the same hotels. It will make life
much easier.
But I had the Brumbies down as winning this one because of
the way they go about their rugby. They
may have been missing a few key players like Ben Mowen and Christian
Lealiifano, but they haven’t been particularly hard hit by the Wallaby squad
call ups because they aren’t a team of star individuals – rather a collective
of very smart, very skilful players who are technically perfectly attuned to
each others’ style of play and have the team spirit and commitment to the
Brumbies’ cause to go out there and put their bodies on the line for one
another every game. This attitude was
obvious from the pre-match changing room shots – there was Peter Kimlin, with
his men around him, firing up his troops and preparing them for their date with
destiny. In contrast, there was the
Lions changing room, with players ambling around getting physios to tape them up,
and captain Rory Best standing there quietly.
In fact, the only player who seemed to show any emotion was a certain
Welsh winger, who was suppressing an overjoyed smirk as he ran onto the field
wearing a jersey he must have thought he would never wear again.
If Shane Williams thought it was great just to be wearing
the Lions shirt again, it very nearly got a whole lot better for the diminutive
winger. Following a kick out on the full
from the usually-excellent Jesse Mogg, Richie Gray tapped down to Ben Youngs,
who burst through a gap and fed Christian Wade.
The young winger was hauled down short of the line, but the ball was
flung left where Williams stepped inside 2 metres from the line before being
clobbered into touch. It was a frantic
start and, unfortunately for the tourists, it was to prove to be as close as
they would come to scoring a try all night.
Instead, it was the hosts who struck first with a try that sums
up everything that’s good about Brumbies rugby – it was fast, powerful and,
above all, clinical. After Stuart Hogg
had cleaned up a loose kick which Williams had made a mess out of, Youngs
hammered a clearance box kick down field. The kick didn’t find touch, and the chase was
poor – a bad combination. The ACT outfit
flung the ball left to Tevita Kuridrani, who got on the outside of Hogg before
brushing off an ineffective tackle from Christian Wade and stepping inside a
disinterested Rob Kearney to touchdown for a fine solo try. Unfortunately, Ian Prior missed the conversion,
but it was first blood to the Super Rugby leaders.
Half the Lions’ backline had just got off the plane in Australia,
and the vast majority hadn’t trained together until the day before the match –
and it showed, as the tourists made basic error after basic error. A Youngs turnover gave them a promising
situation, only for Wade to drop a smart inside ball from Hogg, before
Twelvetrees was hammered back in a tackle from Kuridrani as the Lions tried to
build the phases once more. To make
matters worse, the Achilles heel of this Lions tour – the lineout – was once
again misfiring, with Captain Rory Best seemingly throwing it anywhere except
a) straight, or b) into a Lions player’s hands.
The biggest difference between the 2 sides though, was the
level of intensity. Brumbies skipper
Peter Kimlin looked like a man with a point to prove as he pinched pill of his
illustrious opposition in the lineout and made a number of telling carries to
get his side on the front foot. He was backed
up well by the likes of Colby Faingaa, Scott Fardy and Sam Carter, who were
literally hammering into every breakdown to ensure quick ball for Matt Toomua
and his backline. Without the ball as
well, the Brumbies were winning all the collisions, with Kuridrani taking a
particular shine to Twelvetrees whenever the poor centre took a (usually
hospital) pass.
The hosts deserved to be well out in front, but it wasn’t
until Mogg slammed over a long range penalty 2 minutes from half time, following
an earlier miss from the full back and another miss from Prior, that the Brumbies
actually extended their lead. The 8
point advantage didn’t last long however, as the Lions finally built some
phases (despite the ball being slow and scrappy) to apply a bit of pressure, forcing
the penalty which Hogg managed to slot, having cannoned one off the posts from
an easier position earlier. It gave the
Lions a scarcely-deserved 3 points, and left the score at 8 – 3 to the hosts at
the break.
Andy Farrell was pictured giving the tourists a right royal
b*llocking in the changing rooms at half time, but it can be assumed that
whatever he said did not have the desired effect. Rory Best opened the half with another skewed
throw before chucking his next one straight to the excellent Kimlin – much to
the visible disgust of a frustrated Youngs – before Sean O’Brien lay all over
the ball to concede another 3 pointer to the boot of Mogg. Things then got even worse for the tourists
as the Aussies pumped them in the scrum (you read that correctly) before
conceding a penalty thanks to Ryan Grant’s moronic attempt to remove Scott Sio
from a maul by his face. Mogg once again
obliged with the 3 points.
Thankfully, for the Lions, good work from Sean O’Brien at
the breakdown managed to win a 3 pointer for Hogg and stem the tide of garbage
flowing from the men in red shirts, before Warren Gatland finally rang the
changes and sent on an entirely new front row.
The change worked instantly, with the Brumbies scrum getting a pasting,
but Hogg missed the resulting penalty in an act that was to be his last of the
game, as Owen Farrell made his introductions.
And at an important time too, with Richard Hibbard winning another
penalty attempt following a decent trundle in midfield. Farrell did his usual crazy-eyes routine and
made it a 5 point game with 20 minutes to go.
Although the intensity had been upped – with Geoff Parling having
a particularly positive effect in the lineout and Simon Zebo popping up
everywhere – the Brumbies were still showing real brutality in the
contact. Matt Toomua put in one particularly
powerful hit on Alex Corbisiero before Twelvetrees took yet another hammering –
although, it should be said, he had done well to hang on to the ball every time
he got clattered. Perhaps a little
overeager in defence, Colby Faingaa conceded a penalty which Farrell slotted
from range. 2 points in it, 8 minutes to
go.
Surely the Lions could grind out a dramatic comeback? It looked to be on the cards when the
tireless Toby Faletau made good yardage to get the Lions within range, only for
Conor Murray to get isolated and get turned over by a good combination of
Toomua and Faingaa. Then the Lions had a
scrum after the Brumbies stalled at their ensuing lineout – and they could almost
taste the ensuing penalty after Corbisiero, Hibbard and Dan Cole had turned the
heat up on the hosts in the set piece.
But instead, the ball came miraculously back on the Brumbies’ side. The hosts cleared, the visitors ran out of
ideas, the clock ran out of time, and the Brumbies ran out famous winners.
Beating the Lions is always a nice surprise. But for those in the know, they shouldn’t be
too stunned by this result. Even missing
several front line players, this Brumbies side have shown a resilience, team
spirit and ambition that has taken sides apart throughout this year. I called this as the tour game the Lions
would lose before the tour had started – this was a tremendous victory, a sweet
win that will be cherished and a triumph that will live long in the memory; it
may have been all those things, but it was not a shock. The Brumbies are better than that.
Brumbies Player
Ratings
Jesse Mogg – 6 – Not at his incisive best, and had a couple
of wayward kicks early on, but became a reliable get-out-clause as his side
were pressurised during the second half.
Henry Speight – 6 – No decent ball in space due to the
attritional nature of the game, but what he did do, he did effectively Tevita Kuridrani – 9 – A superbly taken score from the big centre and seemed to enjoy eating Billy Twelvetrees for breakfast every time the English centre got the ball
Andrew Smith – 7 – Not as conspicuous as his centre colleague but part of an aggressive defensive effort that had the Lions on the back foot all day.
Clyde Rathbone – 6 – Like Speight, wasn’t called on too much, but he tackled well and chased kicks with conviction. Still great to see him back out on the rugby field again.
Matt Toomua – 8 – When you can smash a prop forward as a fly half, you’re doing something right. Solid distribution and kicking, but it was his defence and ruck work that caught the eye.
Ian Prior – 6 – A couple of missed kicks may have been costly and sometimes his service was wayward, but his chat kept his side’s intensity up throughout
Ruan Smith – 7 – Comfortably held Matt Stevens at bay in the tight and showed impressive mobility around the park.
Siliva Siliva – 7 – Lineout was a key difference, especially for the first 60 minutes, so the hooker has to take a large slice of the credit for helping his side get the upper hand in a key area
Scott Sio – 8 – Shunted Ryan Grant backwards on occasion and impressed with a couple of bulldozing carries.
Leon Power – 7 – I wish I could come up with a pun on his name without cringing, but he did exactly what it says on the tin. Was a real workhorse for a dominant pack.
Sam Carter – 7 – Abrasive and relentlessly physical, the lock got in the faces of the Lions early on and didn’t take a backwards step.
Scott Fardy – 8 – The blindside flanker was a real menace in the loose, turning over ball on several occasions and chucking in some rib-shaking hits as well.
Colby Faingaa – 7 – Another to impress with brutal defence. A little over-eager at times – leading to penalties – but his intensity was something that the Lions were lacking throughout.
Peter Kimlin (c) – 9 – May just have forced his way into the Wallabies squad. A dominant figure in the tight and an inspiration to his side throughout, carrying time after time into the guts of the Lions’ defence. Man of the Match.
Subs Used:
Josh Mann-Rea – 5 – Lineout started to creak upon his introduction but his energetic work in defence was invaluable late on.
Etienne Oosthuizen – Not enough time to make an impact.
Jordan Smiler – Not enough time to make an impact.
Robbie Coleman – Not enough time to make an impact.
Zack Holmes – Not enough time to make an impact.
Rob Kearney – 6 – A solid full return for the Irishman. The full back was solid under the high ball and kicked well, but couldn’t add the thrust needed in attack.
Christian Wade – 4 – Felt sorry for him as he saw no space and was generally shackled very well. Probably still jetlagged – I’ve not seen him miss many tackles like the one he missed for the try.
Brad Barritt – 5 – As usual, he was solid, but utterly anonymous in attack. Probably because the ball never reached him, though.
Billy Twelvetrees – 4 – Billy Choppedtrees may be more appropriate, considering how hard he was felled every time he touched the ball. His lines weren’t as crisp as usual and he rarely made yards...but that’s not what he’s good at.
Shane Williams – 6 – A respectable display from the great winger. Got little space but a couple of nice steps reminded us of the magic he used to produce on a regular basis.
Stuart Hogg – 5 – Looked shaken by the aggressive defence. Was not helped by painfully slow ball but was far too deep and static. Kicked well from hand, though.
Ben Youngs – 6 – Very mixed. On one hand, probably the Lions’ best running threat, on the other, was guilty of some sloppy service and not finding touch with a key kick. That said, he had no chance to shine due to the awful quality of ball left for him by his pack.
Ryan Grant – 4 – Hammered in the scrum as the game went on and nowhere near as omnipresent as he has been for Scotland. Gave away a stupid penalty as well.
Rory Best (capt) – 3 – A real stinker from the Irishman. Throws were either not straight or hopelessly slow, and his carries were pretty ineffectual. Did nothing to inspire his troops.
Matt Stevens – 5 – At least held his side of the scrum. Didn’t look remotely energetic enough around the park though.
Ian Evans – 5 – I presume he was calling the lineouts, in which case he takes a fair slice of the blame. He was also another to be guilty of looking lethargic when it came to hitting rucks.
Richie Gray – 6 – Stole a couple of lineouts late on but it was too late really. His carrying was fine but his willingness to do the graft could be questioned.
Sean O'Brien – 6 – Made a couple of turnovers but gave a couple of daft penalties away too. Happy to run with it, not so happy to hit rucks on the night for some reason.
Justin Tipuric – 6 – Lacked the intensity he’s shown on tour so far, but in fairness it must be hard to get yourself going when half your pack is trotting around like a group of old ladies at a supermarket.
Toby
Faletau – 7 – Comfortably the Lions’ best player. Never stopped working and made some decent
yards on the carry.
Subs Used:
Richard Hibbard – 6 – Lineout improved with his introduction
but still managed one foul up and another penalty. Carried well though.
Alex Corbisiero – 6 – Did well in the scrum but will not
enjoy getting laid out by a fly half.
Matt Toomua will haunt his dreams for years to come. Dan Cole – 6 – Another solid display in the scrum which one the Lions a couple of penalties.
Geoff Parling – 7 – He’s really impressed this tour. No coincidence that the Lions went from losing their ball to stealing the opposition’s when he came on.
Dan Lydiate – 6 – Probably a reason the Lions managed to build some continuity late on – he actually likes doing the dirty work
Conor Murray – 5 – Gave improved service but his kicking was too long and got isolated at a key time
Owen Farrell – 7 – Showed the value of a proper fly half. Looked unflustered and kicked well from hand and off the tee.
Simon Zebo – 6 – Tried to make things happen and nearly broke through on the odd occasion, but it didn’t quite come off.
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