'We've lots of options': Gatland drops 3rd Test Lions changes hint
Lions boss Warren Gatland has hinted he might be prepared to look beyond Saturday’s second Test matchday 23 selection in the hope of coming up with a winning third Test mix to clinch the series versus the Springboks in Cape Town. The Lions were within 40 minutes of sealing the series with a game to spare when they led South Africa 9-6 at the interval in Saturday’s second game. However, history eluded them when they failed to score in the second half and they instead lost 27-9 after conceding 21 unanswered second-half points.
Gatland altered his matchday 23 for the second Test, bringing in Chris Harris to start and putting Taulupe Faletau on the bench even though they had not been involved in last weekend’s first Test win, and it’s now likely that some other players who have yet to feature in the Test series will potentially be drafted in for the Test series decider in an effort to freshen things up.
This was what famously happened in 2013 in Australia after the Lions failed to clinch that series with a match to spare, Gatland dropping Brian O’Driscoll and a number of other players after the Wallabies struck back to level the series and take it to the deciding third match.
He brought a total of seven fresh players into his matchday 23 for that series decider, starting Jamie Roberts, Mike Phillips, Taulupe Faletau and Alex Corbisiero and putting Richie Gray, Justin Tipuric and Manu Tuilagi on the bench for Sydney after they were all surplus to requirement the previous weekend in Melbourne.
Eight years later, Gatland finds himself occupying similar territory in South Africa after the Lions disappointingly were unable to build on their 22-17 first Test win, allowing a three-point interval lead to be squandered.
It was a sombre Warren Gatland who appeared at this Saturday's post-game media briefing compared to the aftermath of last weekend's first Test Lions win #CastleLionsSeries #LionsRugby #RSAvBIL
https://t.co/UXwJkjp5ij— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 31, 2021
Asked would he go for broke and consider fielding some players in the third Test who have yet to feature in the series, Gatland said: “Selection really has been really tough and there is a lot of players in the squad where it was a toss of a coin in terms of who we selected and who we didn’t. That is a credit to the players in the whole squad who worked really hard.
“The non-23 did a great job in helping the players prepare and we will spend the next couple of days reviewing and looking at what we think is the best 23 to put out and whether that has some fresh faces that haven’t been involved in the first two games. We have got lots of options in terms of bringing guys in to give us some energy perhaps or some momentum as well.
“Do we need to make some changes? I was happy with that first-half performance and thought we were getting some reward out of that, and we just didn’t get any bounce of the ball in that second half to be able to create some momentum.
“The game was very, very slow how often the clock was stopped and how slow it was. They [the Springboks] did a good job of managing that by slowing the game down which was frustrating for us because it was difficult to get that rhythm in the second half because of how much was stop-start.
“That second half we didn’t get anything really. We got no momentum, no real opportunity to play, nothing at all from any kick returns whether it was us or them. That was disappointing and we have probably given away some penalties.
“In fairness to them, they scrummaged pretty well in the second half, drove a lot and got some reward from that. We were happy with the way the first half had gone and we felt going into half-time we had carried well, we had got some forward momentum and we just didn’t achieve that at all in the second half.
“We were pretty happy with that in the first half in terms of carrying and stuff. The ground conditions were difficult. There was a scrum penalty against Tadhg Furlong for going down but when you look at the replay it’s not that he has collapsed the scrum or lost his bind, his feet have just gone completely under him and you can see the sand and the grass go from that and sometimes that happens in a game and it is difficult.
“And the way they defend and rush up is quite tough, there were a couple of opportunities where we probably should have put the ball through the hands and looked to exploit that.
“The players are very disappointed but next Saturday is a cup final and that is the way we have got to look at it and prepare. There are a few things we have got to tidy up in our game but it’s one-all and South Africa put a huge amount of emotion into that game so we have got that chance next week to win the series.”
PLAYER RATINGS: The Lions faced a roll reversal in Cape Town, fading before a second-half Bok onslaught.
Here's how we rated the players #LionsTour2021 #LionsRugby #RSAvBIL https://t.co/Y1gAvsHpE8
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 31, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
No Nick, they did not, in fact, justify any ‘probables’ label. At no time did they seriously compete for the championship. Ireland led from start to finish and in the end, as a result of glaring referee errors, were never under serious pressure to lose their crown.
28 Go to commentsMoney for him, and his family, has been the sole motivator since he signed for Queensland aged 17. Why else sign for Melbourne. Tupou is poorly advised. If he’d stayed and developed in NZ he would have had a long Test career. If Leinster offer him a few more coins than he’s currently earning, he’s goneburger.
4 Go to commentsFinn. No one would say Ford had played well up until the last game. One standout performance in 5 is hardly in form . It should be a given that a 10 will control play . Not in Fords case be praised for suddenly doing so. Where was he against Scotland ,Italy. The pundits were saying how far away from play he was standing and one even said that the Ireland game was his last chance saloon to perform . Not exactly top form catching anyones eye. If he can play like this game after game then great. Keep him in . But after 90 odd caps we all know he just doesnt keep it going . By all means keep him there but the issue is that Borthwick will persist even when he plays poorly. Which is more often than not. Thats why i am concerned that Smith ,despite fab form , cannot get a game at his preferred spot. Can you imagine Ford at full back .
5 Go to commentsI do not really get why put Ollivon at 6 when he’s a 7, while Cros was the best Frenchman of the tournament, playing at…6. His only game replacing Aldritt at 8 doesn’t change much in terms of his impact. Lamaro was also outstanding in that brilliant Italian side, probably better than Reffell. So putting 2 Welsh players from the wooden spoon holders, and none of the 4th nation (Scotland) is also strange. Is it about showing that in this harsh transition Wales is, there were some standouts…?
6 Go to commentsThe events at this year’s six nations should undermine many of the arguments made against promotion and relegation between the six nations and the REC. If Italy had been allowed to yo-yo between divisions it conceivably could have really hurt their development, but if Italy, Wales, and Scotland are all at risk of relegation, with none of them being relegated more often than once every 3 or 4 years, you’d have to back all of them to muddle on through it, especially when you factor in the likelihood they’ll still be guaranteed world league matches against tier 1 opponents. Another way of looking at italys resurgence would be to say that the development model of adding an extra team to the six nations has worked, and now must be done again. Georgia could join to make it a 7 team round robin, and if and when Georgia demonstrate an ability to consistently win games, Portugal can also be added to make it an 8 team 2 conference competition. Frankly at this point I think it falls to world rugby to demand that the 6N act in the interests of the game. If the 6N won’t commit to expansion then the 6N teams should be handicapped in world cup draws (i.e. world cup seedings would not be based on their ranking points, but on their ranking points minus a 5 point penalty).
5 Go to commentsSteve Borthwick deserves credit for releasing the shackles on his England side and letting them play in a manner that somewhat resembles the top sides in the Gallagher Premiership. Will they revert to type in New Zealand in July.?
28 Go to commentsJames Lowe wouldn't get in any other 6N team. He's a great example of Farrell’s brilliance, and the Irish system. He is slow. His footwork is poor. But he fits perfectly in that Irish system, and has a superb impact. But put him in another team, and he'll look bang average.
6 Go to commentsCrusaders reached their heights through recruitment of North Island players, often leaving those NI teams bereft of key players. Example: Scott Barrett and Sam Whitelock robbed the Canes of their lineout and AB locks. For years the Canes have struggled at lock. This rabid recruitment was iniated by rule changes by a Crusader dominated NZR Head Office. Now this aggressive recruitment has back-fired, going after young inside back Hamilton Boys stars. They now have 4 Chiefs region 10s and not one with the requisite experience at Super level. Problems of their own making!
2 Go to commentsOver rated for a long time…exposed at scrum time too.
4 Go to comments“Firing me” should have been Gatland’s answer.
2 Go to commentsFinn Russell logic: “World” = 4 countries. Ireland may be at or near the top. FR’s bigger concern should be he and his fellow Scots (incl. the Bloemfontein ones) sliding back down to below top 10
42 Go to commentsMind games have begun. Ireland learned their lesson after saying they could beat England with 13 players or whatever. Still, if they win at Loftus, that would be impressive - final frontier etc.
58 Go to comments$950k for a Prop that isn’t fit enough to play 10 mins of rugby? Surely there is someone better to replace Big Mike with
4 Go to commentsFour Kiwis in that backline. A solid statement on the lack of invention, risk-taking and joy in the NH game; game of attrition and head- banging tedium. Longterm medical problems aplenty in the future!
6 Go to commentsGood article, I learnt quite a lot. A big sliding door moment was in the mid 00s when they rejected Steve Anderson's long term transformation and he wrote Ireland's strategy instead.
2 Go to commentsHi Dr Nick! I'm worried that I've started to enjoy watching England and have actually wanted them to win their last two games. What would you prescribe? On a more serious note, I've noticed that the standard of play in March is often better than early February. Do you think this is because of the weather or because the players have been together for longer?
28 Go to commentsMy question in all this brett is who is going to wear the consequences of these actions? Surely just getting the sack isn’t sufficient? A teenager working the till at woolies would probably get taken to court if they took $20 out of the till. You mean to tell me that someone can spend $2.6 million and get away with it? Where was it spent? What companies/people were the beneficiaries etc? How is it just being talked about as an ‘oopsie’ and we all just move on and not a matter of the court for gross negligence, fraud, take your pick…
21 Go to commentslove Manu too but England have relied on him coming back from injury for far too long and not sorted the position with someone else long term . It will be a blessing he has gone . Huge shame he was so injury prone . God speed Manu .
3 Go to commentsI agree with Ben Smith about Brett Cameron. The No. 6 position has to be a monster and a genuine lineout option, like Ollivon, Lawes (now Chessum), Du Toit, etc. The only player who fits that bill right now is Scott Barrett. A fit and fizzing Tuipolotu together with one of the young towers, Sam Darry or Josh Lord, would give Razor the freedom to play Barret at 6.
16 Go to commentsOutstanding article, Graham. Agree with all of it. And enjoy the style of writing too (particularly Grand Slap!).
3 Go to comments