The British and Irish lions have easily accounted for a less than full strength Western Force side in Perth.
The Match
The game was a little scrappy at times, but the Lions were never really in any trouble, dominating both possession and territory for long periods, especially in the first half.
As is often the case in these types of games, the action started off a little slowly while the two sides felt each other out a bit. After that settling in period the Lions big men started to assert some authority over the contest and spread the ball a bit wider. This is when the likes of North, Tuilagi and O’Driscoll got involved. The Force defence battled hard and scrambled well, but were eventually overwhelmed.
From this point onward it looked like it was going to be an onslaught, with the Lions breaking the line several times. However, they were a little wasteful a few times in the first half and either coughed the ball up in contact or tried to throw a few too many fifty-fifty passes. This early in the tour you can justify that with guys trying to find their combinations. With that said, O’Driscoll did score in the corner from some great hands out wide. North in particular was impressive, showing that he isn’t just a big body, but he has skill to go with it too.
Johnny Sexton at five-eighth also under played his hand nicely, opting most of the time to put the ball through the hands rather than kicking first. I would consider him a near certainty to start at 10 in the first test unless Farrell really stars in whatever game time he is given. The interplay with his illustrious countryman showed the value of the rugby they’ve played together.
As the game wore on the big and battle hardened Lions pack further dominated what my esteemed colleague Lee Grant calls the “tight loose”. That is, the close in collisions where the Lions forwards kept the ball up off the ground in the tackle and either forced the attacking team backwards or attempted to win a scrum from a maul situation. Expect to see a lot more of that kind of forward play on this tour and Ireland in particular have used those tactics to good effect against Australia.
What the Lions will be less happy with are the number of penalties they gave away and their general inaccuracy at the breakdown. From my vantage point it wasn’t always easy to see if the penalties were deserved, but there seemed to be a lot of them. This is a traditional area of strength for Wallaby teams, so it’s something they are going to need to improve when the important games start. With that said, I thought Tom Croft had a strong game in the loose.
On the flip side, Warren Gatland will be absolutely chuffed with the kicking form of fullback Lee Halfpenny. He was laser like from the tee tonight and that most certainly will fire a warning shot across the bow of the Wallabies regarding their discipline. They just cannot afford to give away penalties anywhere in their own half, because they will be punished. The diminutive Welshman is also an excellent running threat from the back and this was on display a couple of times.
Through the second half you could see the tempo of the game lift a notch or two and the Force backline had real trouble containing their better credentialed opponents. It’s hard to blame them really as they’ve hardly played together. I imagine a few of them might have almost had to introduce themselves in the dressing sheds before the game. The Lions hands got ever slicker in the second stanza and there was no better example than the passing that led to O’Driscoll’s second try. It was quality footy and good to watch. O’Driscoll I think has inked his name on the team sheet for the first test already. Tuilagi also did himself no harm, with an imposing display at 12.
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Injuries
There would be massive concern over Cian Healy, after his ankle injury. That could be tour ending.
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The G&GR MotM
The great man Brian O’Driscoll. The old dog was all class tonight.
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Wallaby watch
Nobody really, given that it was an understrength team, though I thought Richard Brown fought manfully in a beaten side. The selection door might have closed for him now, but he’s still quality at the very least at provincial level.
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The Details
British and Irish Lions: 69 (Sexton, O’Driscoll 2, Croft, Heaslip, Vunipola, Bowe, Farrell, Parling tries; Halfpenny 9 convs; Halfpenny 2 pens) defeated Western Force: 17 (Brown, McCaffrey tries, Sheehan 2 convs, Sheehan pen)
Yellow cards: Ed Stubbs, Alun-Wyn Jones
Refereee: Glen Jackson
