Wallabies vs B&I Lions takes: Gibson-Park saved Lions, Gordon proved costly

The Wallabies power game came to life in the second Test with the heavy artillery in the form of Will Skelton and Rob Valetini making a difference for the home side in front of 90,307 in Melbourne, but a last-minute try to Hugo Keenan claimed the series for the visitors.

The Lions playing on the edge proved costly early with their aggressive line speed and spoiling tactics at the ruck penalised. With the Lions down to 14 men, the Wallabies capitalised scoring two tries to build a big 23-5 lead in the first half.

The Lions struck back quickly with two tries from short range to get within six before half-time. The Lions produced a stirring second half which produced a series-winning try to Hugo Keenan on the buzzer.

Wallaby captain Harry Wilson at the Melbourne Cricket Ground

The side finalised their preparations at the iconic venue today ahead of Saturday’s second Test against the British & Irish Lions.

Wallaby captain Harry Wilson at the Melbourne Cricket Ground

The side finalised their preparations at the iconic venue today ahead of Saturday’s second Test against the British & Irish Lions.

Jamison Gibson-Park saved the Lions

Down by 23-5 after 30 minutes, when it came to producing the tries that got the Lions back into the game, the most important man in a red jersey was halfback Jamison Gibson-Park.

Without him, perhaps the series goes to Sydney levelled 1-1. It was Gibson-Park’s decision-making and pass selection that crafted all of their tries in the comeback.

Tom Curry’s try came after the No.9 sniped off to the right side just as a Wallabies defender entered the ruck. Smart hands through Conan gave Curry the chance. At 26-17 he threw a long cutout ball to James Lowe, who crafted some space from Tadhg Beirne down the right touchline. The final try to Keenan came from a Gibson-Park pass to give the Irish fullback a 1-on-1 matchup.

Maro Itoje was named man-of-the-match but the man with the most direct influence was Gibson-Park, with a hand in all three tries in the comeback.

Two-headed monster caused damage

The return of Will Skelton and Rob Valetini gave the Wallabies a noticeable lift in power. Skelton successfully rattled the Lions early with a bit of shirt-grabbing and confrontation after popping Furlong. The pair carried hard around the corner to smash the Lions down main street. The power attack worked in the first half, with launches winning consistnet gain line and leading to points or penalties for the Wallabies. It’s fair to say the Lions had no real answer for this game plan.

Player Carries

1

Len Ikitau

13

2

Harry Wilson

13

3

Tadhg Beirne

11

From the maul, the tight phases and carries led to Slipper’s try, and some smart work from Jake Gordon scored the second after a long phase count built by the forwards. Valetini was subbed at half-time for Langi Gleeson, while Skelton gave Schmidt 47 minutes. When the pair went off, the Wallabies began lost the ability to really combat the Lions and despite valiant efforts, the Australians fell at the last minute as the resistance caved.

This series could be very different if Skelton and Valetini were available for the first Test, or able to play longer minutes in Melbourne.

Finn Russell rocks and diamonds

Lions flyhalf Russell had a mixed bag in Melbourne.

On the positive side, his quick line kicks captured huge metres for the Lions that they otherwise couldn’t earn through their attack. These were in front of the mark at times and he was fortunate not to get called back for it. But they pinned the Wallabies down inside the five which the Lions profited from once in the first half and utilised the field position.

On the negative, he had a tough night from the tee, missing two conversions in the first half. His first one hit the upright and his second pushed slightly past the left upright. There were a couple of clangers, a pass directly into touch early in the first and he kicked out on the full 10 minutes into the second. Overall, Russell’s performance was below par.

Gordon takes plenty of blame for late collapse

After leading for 76 minutes the home side gave up the lead in the final minute. They had produced a game worthy of a winning, outgunning the Lions 9-4 in the line breaks. They played a near-perfect opening 30 minutes to go up 23-5 with all the pressure on the Lions.

Where did it go wrong? A spilled high ball by Tom Lynagh was the catalyst for the second Lions try. An attacking penalty on Joseph Suaalii cleaning out inside the Lions half was the catalyst for the next. Conceding those two before half-time was painful.

The manner in which the Lions were able to go straight to the corner from penalties cost them dearly, as the Lions attack couldn’t muster anything meaningful otherwise. But once down inside the five, the Lions were able to wear the Wallabies down on their line and crash over.

These momentum swings plagued the Wallabies. They were perhaps guilty of overplaying late in the first half with the lead, when they could have turned the screws on the Lions through the air and protected a 23-10 lead.

It was the same story at 26-24 in the final quarter, they were going backward in attack, only to get pinged by Maro Itoje as he won a ruck penalty. They didn’t need to be playing phases. A miraculous steal by Tizzano on the goal line saved the Wallabies from conceding on that occassion.

The Wallabies bench were good, but they weren’t able to replicate the impact of Skelton and Valetini. The ball carriers started to go backwards without their go forward.

A terrible forward pass from Jake Gordon blew prime field position where the Wallabies were working for a position to score with 14 minutes to go.

There were too many big moments that the Wallabies can look back on despite the game coming down to one final play and Gordon’s fingerprints were on them despite having such a good first half.