Lions roar past Western Force to get tour up and running in style
Lions wing Mack Hansen passes the ball. Pic: Dan Sheridan/Inpho
The British and Irish Lions got their Australian tour up and running in impressive style with an eight-try defeat of their first Super Rugby opposition on Saturday.
Eight days on from a disappointing pre-tour international defeat to Argentina, head coach Andy Farrell will be more satisfied with this run-out from a much-changed team backboned by eight starting Ireland players and anchored by impressive half-backs Tomos Williams and Finn Russell.Â
The lineout was more efficient, passes stuck and there were some cracking scores as Williams and Daly scored two apiece, with a trio of Irish debutants also grabbing tries through captain Dan Sheehan, Garry Ringrose and man of the match Joe McCarthy.
The Lions had got off to a dream start, scoring inside the first two minutes as Finn Russell sent a inch-perfect crossfield kick to captain Dan Sheehan, whose instant pass set up a one-two with James Lowe for the hooker to receive and score.
Western Force hit back immediately as the tourists misjudged the restart, Wallabies scrum-half and Force skipper Nic White scoring at the other end but the Lions took control with two more quality tries before half-time, from Tomos Williams as he tracked a brilliant charge and offload from Henry Pollock and then full-back Elliot Daly after a clever quick tap penalty from Russell caught the hosts napping.
A yellow card just before half-time for Pollock after a penalty concession on a lengthy referee’s warning but the Lions’ attacking flow wasn’t stifled with a man down, Tomos Williams finishing a superb turnover counter attack.
The only blot was the Wales scrum-half injuring his hamstring in the act of scoring his second of the game but when returned to their full complement, the Lions put the game beyond the Super Rugby side.Â
Tries from Irish debutants Garry Ringrose and Joe McCarthy in the 51st and 53rd minutes were both converted by Russell to take his tally to five conversions from six attempts.
Nor did Russell’s departure on 61 minutes halt the Lions’ momentum, Daly popping up to finish their seventh try, converted by replacement fly-half Marcus Smith 10 minutes from time, before Alex Mitchell crowned the night with an eighth to bring up the half century of points.
A strong start quickly undone through a high penalty count will give Farrell plenty of ammunition on the training field as the tour transfers to Brisbane but there were positives in the way the Lions grew stronger throughout the rest of the game, keeping the Force scoreless after four minutes and some impressive individual performances.
Joe McCarthy’s man-of-the-match performance set the standard for the squad’s second rows and the Lions forwards in general with his tenacity at the breakdown and in the loose. There were plus points aplenty but the number 10 Test jersey is now Finn Russell’s to lose while Mack Hansen was the pick of the outside backs and baby of the squad Henry Pollock held his own with some punchy contributions.
The Lions got an early taste of New Zealander Ben O’Keeffe’s officiating ahead of the Kiwi taking charge of the first Test with the Wallabies on July 19 and his handling of the breakdown in which the ball carrier was consistently favoured over potential jackalers. They will also have learned he is a patient man, yellow-carding Henry Pollock just before half-time having issued a sin-bin warning to his captain 30 minutes earlier after an early flurry of penalties from the tourists.
The departure of scrum-half Tomos Williams to a hamstring issue after scoring his second try of the night will be a serious concern for Andy Farrell, especially given Jamison Gibson-Park’s lack of game time due to a calf issue. His rapid removal could mean a precautionary move from the Lions but the medical report will reveal all at a later date.
The Lions’ Australian tour goes from coast to coast as they swap the Indian Ocean for the Pacific ahead of Wednesday morning’s second tour match against the Queensland Reds in Brisbane and a challenge laid down by former Ireland assistant and future Wallabies head coach Les Kiss.
B Donaldson; M Grealy, M Proctor, H Stewart, D Pietsch (B Kuenzle, 61); A Harford (M Burey, 52), N White – captain (H Robertson, 55); T Robertson (M Pearce, 55), B Paenga-Amosa (T Horton, 55), O Hoskins (T Tauakipulu, 64); S Carter (L Faifua, 49), D Swain; W Harris (R Prinsep, 10-23 - HIA), N Champion de Crespigny, V Ekuasi (R Prinsep, 52).
E Daly; M Hansen, G Ringrose (H Jones, 55), S Tuipulotu, J Lowe; F Russell (M Smith, 61), T Williams (A Mitchell, 48); P Schoeman (A Porter, 49), D Sheehan – captain (R Kelleher, 65), T Furlong (W Stuart, 49); S Cummings (O Chessum, 49), J McCarthy; T Beirne (J Conan, 49), J van der Flier, H Pollock.
H Pollock 40-50.
Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
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