Defeat against the Blues means the Lions need to ditch ‘rugby chaos’ and develop a clearer plan with tougher challenges aheadDrawing conclusions this early in a British & Irish Lions tour can be dangerous but there is one that can already be made with certainty: the phrase “rugby chaos” must be banished from the tourists’ vocabulary, never to return.It always had the whiff of a soundbite, dreamt up by an anxious PR team eager to deflect attention from negative “Warrenball” headlines, but with a laborious opening victory now followed by defeat against the weakest of Super Rugby sides the Lions will face, it has backfired with an irony not lost on the caustic New Zealand press. Related: Lions slip to disappointing defeat...
Successful sides in New Zealand have displayed the necessity of strong tactical kicking from the fly-half and the Lions would do well to take noteThis tour was 34 seconds old when Bryn Gatland grubber-kicked into the British & Irish Lions 22. It was dealt with but as an attacking ploy it highlighted a difference between the sides.The Lions, at least when Johnny Sexton was at fly-half, looked to keep the ball in hand, either employing big ball-carriers to get over the gain-line or using loops and changes of direction to create space, but Gatland, in the manner of a New Zealand No10, varied his options more. Related: Lions hit right note off the field but show worrying lack of rhythm...
A slow start with a lack of intensity and a failure to take their chances meant the Lions were largely reliant on their bench for positives from the tour opener Related: Lions limp past NZ Provincial Barbarians thanks to Anthony Watson try Continue reading...
Australia’s quicks were frustrated by Kane Williamson’s century in a rain-hit Champions Trophy game at a ground where their bowlers have struggled latelyBeer sales were just a little brisker than typical on the 7.43 out of Euston on Friday morning, but then it wasn’t carrying your usual commuter crowd. There were a few hundred expat cricket fans on board, making the early run up to Birmingham for the Trans-Tasman derby between Australia and New Zealand at Edgbaston. As the train left Coventry the announcer reassured them all that, if they were quick, they had time for one more round before they reached New Street. Which set the day up perfectly. Because in between all the longueurs while the showers blew...
The last three British & Irish Lions sides in New Zealand struggled for tries but the current squad boasts more talent and a formidable roster of goal-kickersTwelve years in international rugby union is a sporting eternity. The last time the British & Irish Lions embarked on the ultimate tour of tours to New Zealand, Maro Itoje was a 10-year-old and Tony Blair had just won his third election. That whole expedition – Gavin Henson, Alastair Campbell, the ill-fated Power of Four anthem, the single rooms – seems like a distant relic from another age. Related: Gatland has flexibility and flair to shelve Warrenball and challenge New Zealand | Paul Rees Related: Warren Gatland out to make Lions players household names...