An incredible test match, culminating in a direct blow to the heart of Australian rugby by the Irishman Hugo Keenan.
The British and Irish Lions sealed their first series win since 2013 on Saturday night, which came on their last visit to Australia, overcoming a 23-5 first-half deficit to beat the Wallabies 29-26 in front of 90,307 fans at the MCG.
Tonight will not be easily forgotten by any of those followers. The pain will linger for Australian rugby fans, probably for at least another 12 years, while for those wearing red it was total ecstasy when Keenan finished what was a thrilling final charge by the Lions, which covered 12 phases, skipping past Len Ikitau and over the line for the game-defining score with only 50 seconds to play.
But drama soon unfolded as officials reviewed an illegal contact to the head of Wallabies replacement Carlo Tizzano. However, Italian referee Andrea Piardi kept his cool and came to the decision along with his fellow officials that replacement Jac Morgan’s cleanout was fine and no foul play had occurred.
“And that’s how it is, we just have to accept it”. Despite the late drama, this was a test match worthy of the occasion and the large crowd that filled the largest stadium in Australian sport, and surely one of the best in the world. The red and gold supporters paraded through the city all night, after having filled Melbourne’s pubs and clubs for the past few days. And they were treated to an exciting contest that rivaled any iconic sporting event that has taken place inside the ‘G’. There will be few endings like Saturday night’s; the final result is a brutal pill that will take a while for the Wallabies to digest. When the outrage over Morgan’s clearance subsides, Australian fans will reflect on the fact that their team had fought their way into a winning position at 23-5, but simply couldn’t finish the job. Australia could only add three more points from the 29th minute onwards, with two missed conversions by Tom Lynagh that again hurt the Wallabies. In his second trial race, Wallabies number 10 suffered another difficult night that was overshadowed by his hit that invited the Lions back into the contest just after the half hour. Australia had enjoyed almost all of the first half play up to that point, with the exception of another dubious try by Lions hooker Dan Sheehan, and played some of the best rugby of the Schmidt era. But the determination and execution of the Lions, particularly at the last moment, could not be faulted, as they outscored the Wallabies five tries to three and, overall, looked the more threatening team in attack for much of the match. The Lions captain, Maro Itoje, a deserved man of the match, was heroic in defense, making 20 tackles and winning a crucial breakdown penalty in the second half. He was supported once again by Tadhg Beirne and Jack Conan, while the front row of Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong emptied the tank before being replaced.“You can’t hit someone above the shoulder level and there’s no grip with the left arm, the hand is on the ground, so that’s what we’ve seen and we’ve seen a number of replays from different angles,” Schmidt said about the incident after the match.
Joe Schmidt
First it was Tom Curry who reduced the margin to 13 points, the back-rower retreating inside Gordon to score on the outside, after some powerful carries in tight spaces and the intelligent marshal of Jamison Gibson-Park. While Russell’s conversion was wide, the Lions re-entered just three minutes later when they rolled back inside Australia’s 22 and then saw Huw Jones slide between Tate McDermott and Jorgensen to snatch the momentum completely.
And things really didn’t change from then on, with the Lions scoring two tries in the second half through Beirne and then Keenan’s match winner, while all Australia could manage was another Lynagh penalty. And so the series moves to Sydney, where there is nothing to play for for Australia, but pride, also some much-needed momentum before the Rugby Championship. The Lions will have fun in the coming days, no doubt, but they will be motivated to complete a sweep of their Australian tour, and pile more pain on the Wallabies and rugby in Oceania. Downcast at the end, the Wallabies reflected the mood of everyone in gold inside the MCG. They had done enough to win this game in a burst of three tries and eight minutes in the first half while Freeman was on the bench. This should have been a lead they would never relinquish, just as it was for the Lions with 24-5 in Brisbane last week. But they fell into a gigantic hole after the first half hour and you always had the feeling that the Lions were going to swallow them up. The fact that they did it in such a late and dramatic way was salt in the wound for the Wallabies and an Australian rugby public that has suffered for a long time. That won’t worry Lions fans one bit. Many of those who traveled from the other side of the world stayed long after halftime, saluting their heroes before returning to Flinders Street, where the party will undoubtedly continue. A party that will arrive in Sydney next week without the stress of knowing that the series is still in play. Itoje, Farrell and the rest of the touring Lions horde have written themselves into rugby history.
