The British and Irish Lions failed to complete the 3-0 series sweep against Australia, falling 22-12 at Accor Stadium. Joe Schmidt’s team showed passion, emotion, and determination, dominating much of the match, especially in the lineout and the first scrums. Although it wasn’t the Lions’ best performance, with the series already secured, a slight relaxation could be forgiven. Perhaps that’s what makes a sweep so difficult. The Lions would have been the first team in over 50 years to achieve this, but they encountered difficulties in the humid conditions. Australia’s early lead with a try by Dylan Pietsch and Tom Lynagh’s boot prevented them from dominating the match as they had done in the previous two games. Additionally, there were head injuries in the first half for captain Maro Itoje and wing Tommy Freeman, who did not return after HIA assessments. It was a match that had everything, from a weather delay to near fights. Below, we analyze the performance of each Lions player in the final match of the series.
Player Ratings
Andrew Porter, prop
RATING: 6 Beaten by Taniela Tupou in the scrum, Australia found it easy to get under his skin.Dan Sheehan, hooker
RATING: 7 Stunning as always. He loves wide spaces and did a good job in them again. The Lions struggled in the lineout, but Sheehan is arguably the best hooker in the world right now.Tadhg Furlong, prop
RATING: 6 Strong in defense, but struggled to make an impact after the weather interruption.Maro Itoje, second row
RATING: 7 I was getting into the game well before his head injury. Not much to highlight, but he looked solid when he was on the field.James Ryan, second row
RATING: 6 It probably didn’t have the physical impact he would have wanted after starting against a very determined Australian pack.Tadhg Beirne, flanker
RATING: 6.5 Not as impactful as in the second match, but it was solid enough in good conditions. He struggled in the lineout.Tom Curry, flanker
RATING: 7 He won a couple of big ground duels and made some important tackles, but another who was a little distracted by off-the-ball troubles.Jack Conan, No. 8
RATING: 7.6 He struggled to move forward and didn’t have the impact he had in the previous two games.Jamison Gibson-Park, scrum-half
RATING: 8 He controlled things well considering the terrible conditions. He also made a smart play to stop a certain try by Dylan Pietsch at the end.Finn Russell, fly-half
RATING: 6 He seemed to struggle with the conditions, with some handling errors and sometimes trying to do too much to advance the team. Named player of the series, which was well deserved.Bundee Aki, inside center
RATING: 6.5 Sometimes he seemed out of rhythm and struggled to deal with the Australian centers, who were very sharp at all times.Huw Jones, outside center
RATING: 7 Calm during the match, but didn’t make many mistakes. Again, overshadowed by the opposing crosses.Blair Kinghorn, left wing
RATING: 8 He seemed animated with his first touches. Not in his preferred position, so it would have been good to see him at fullback, but safe hands anyway. He would have wanted more ball.Tommy Freeman, Right Wing
RATING: 7 He had a couple of good runs at the beginning, considering he hasn’t trained much this week. Another one who didn’t return after the break due to a failed HIA.Hugo Keenan, fullback
RATING: 8 He always seems to be in the right position and cleaned up well in the conditions. He never seemed to be under pressure and always seems to have time with the ball.Substitutes:
Ronan Kelleher: 5.5 – Yellow carded when he came on. Failed to make a big impact.Ellis Genge: 8 – He made an impact and got physical with Taniela Tupuo, which was needed.Will Stuart: 7.5 – He got a try and will take a lot from the tour in general. It would have been good to see more of him, but he was solid throughout.Ollie Chessum: 8 – Handled his early introduction well and did a solid job.Jac Morgan: 9 – He had a great impact when he came on. It would have been good to see him start.Ben Earl: n/a
Alex Mitchell: n/a
Owen Farrell: 6 – It wasn’t his best game, but he got into the game early and fought to catch up. The weather interruption wouldn’t have helped.
