West gives Lions the Auckland blues
Ihaia West’s spectacular try five minutes from time handed the British and Irish Lions another stark warning of the challenge that lies ahead on their tour of New Zealand, as they were beaten 22-16 by the Blues in Auckland on Wednesday.
Having produced a nervy 13-7 victory over the Provincial Barbarians in their opener at the weekend, the Lions needed a win over the bottom club in Super Rugby’s New Zealand Conference to ease any pressure that may begin to build.
Warren Gatland’s men trailed at the interval despite an improved first-half display – a CJ Stander try sandwiched between scores for the excellent Rieko Ioane and Sonny Bill Williams – but failed to muster much of a response after the break.
A Liam Williams yellow card hampered their chances of recovery and, while Leigh Halfpenny managed to kick the Lions back in front, West’s touchdown was a worthy match winner.
The result puts pressure on the Lions’ trip to face the Crusaders on Saturday, and Warren Gatland could now face tougher questions than the one to which he took umbrage earlier this week.
It was the Lions who applied the early pressure and Jared Payne was unfortunate not to open the scoring when, after punting a loose pass forward, he lost a race with the ball for the dead ball line.
The Blues soon had their visitors stretched and a wonderful looping pass from Augustine Pulu released Ioane down the left to send the home side in front.
The moment Rieko scored… Photo by @PhotosportNZ #BLUvBIL pic.twitter.com/lzulcA0FZj
— The Blues (@BluesRugbyTeam) June 7, 2017
Stephen Perofeta, on his maiden Blues start, was wayward from the tee but was on hand to deny Payne a try at the other end soon after – the Ireland centre’s boot deemed to be in touch as he dived for the line.
In contrast to the boos and heckles that greeted every Lions decision to take the three points in Whangarei at the weekend, the tourists were cheered for their ambition when opting to kick for the corner at Eden Park.
And that bravery was rewarded when Stander touched down from the back of a powerful maul, with Halfpenny adding the extras before sending over a penalty to put the Lions 10-5 in front.
Ioane had a second try chalked off for offside, while a head injury to Dan Biggar allowed Jonathan Sexton a chance to improve on his below-par display against the Barbarians.
As the heavens opened, a high tackle by Stander on Steven Luatua gave Perofeta the chance to close the Blues within two.
The fly-half’s kick bounced back off the posts but Williams pounced on the loose ball after Jack Nowell had pushed it back over his own try line, sending the Blues in at half-time with a 12-10 lead.
Ioane went over again shortly after the interval but, like Payne in the same corner earlier in the match, was shown to have had a foot dragged into touch when the decision went to the TMO.
West – on for Perofeta – split the posts for the first points of the second half and the Lions were dealt a further blow when replacement Liam Williams was sin binned for challenging Matt Duffie in the air twice in quick succession.
Williams returned to the action with the Lions having reduced the deficit to two thanks to a Halfpenny penalty, before the full-back edged the tourists in front with another kick from distance.
But the joy was short-lived as, after a couple of fantastic offloads, West carved a route through the Lions defence to surge clear and cross under the posts, giving himself a simple conversion.
The Lions wasted a late lineout as the clock struck 80, sparking wild celebrations among the Blues players.
1 – @lionsofficial have lost just one midweek fixture since defeat to Australia A during the 2001 tour (v Brumbies in 2013). Solid. pic.twitter.com/GpXVf0MDY0
— OptaJonny (@OptaJonny) June 7, 2017
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments