Winners
THE UNDOUBTED STAR of the first half for the tourists, and he only arrived on the field (out of position) after 20 minutes, was George North.
But first, we need to talk about T-Bowe. Before the crushing news of his hand injury became fully apparent, Ian McGeechan rightly singled him out for special praise after the game and it was little wonder. While Luke Morahan made hay on the opposite wing, Bowe ensured the Reds threat was isolated there and cordoned off the speed-freak Rod Davies.
It was a performance that had all but assured him of a place in the Text XV. Little wonder he cut such an dejected figure after receiving the news.
After Jonathan Sexton replaced his countryman, North was shifted back into his favoured position. This game wasn’t supposed to be a showcase for George North, but after Manu Tuilagi suffered a shoulder injury in the first quarter.
North is the big winner from an otherwise worrying week. With very little experience at outside centre he has managed to prove himself just as dangerous in midfield as he is on the wing. He will not be trusted to start a Test there, his versatility will help his case for a starting berth.
Losers
In this part of the northern hemisphere, we are so often left to bemoan conditions that made the game impossible for wingers to thrive. The first half in Brisbane was the opposite. Alex Cuthbert was badly caught flat-footed numerous times by Morahan, including for the Reds’ opening score of the game.
In attack too, he looked strangely limp. After Bowe’s magnificent break, Cuthbert looked a sure bet to romp home. Instead, he coasted into touch.
Owen Farrell also botched a certain try, but a hamstring worry to Jonathan Sexton combined with flawless goal-kicking means he breaks even today.
Sam Warburton does slip to the wrong side of the ledger. The Tour captain is fast becoming a serious doubt to even make himself worthy of a place in the match-day squad. We sympathise with him on the missed score, recovering from injury with two backs chasing him down.
However, Test teams don’t do sympathy and it’s difficult to imagine Justin Tipuric or Sean O’Brien passing up such a golden opportunity for seven points and to be fended off so easily as he was for Morahan’s – admittedly impressive – try was concerning.
Wow. So many things wrong with this article. North was good, but not he best player. Bowe was outstanding, breaking the line numerous times and made try saving tackles on the left wing.
Farrell had his best game of the series. Flawless place kicking and broke the line twice. He was unlucky not to score, but I don’t think he ‘botched’ it. Lost the try due to the great Luke morahan.
And then warburton, broke the line, showed more pace than was expected of him and was stopped by good defence. Made tackles and did his job well. Unnecessary criticism.
I agree more with the article. None of the back row 3 did enough in contact today. Warburton didn’t have a big game which he needed to be considered ahead of the other no.7s on tour. With the way the reds played there was always going to be line breaks but the lions were not clinical like they have been. Could/should have scored 5 tries in the first half which would have put a different reflection on the game
I think SOB will have to settle with he big impact player off he bench when the Aussies start to tire.
Tipuric still the the better choice for 7.
If a player has been out with injury it generally takes at least one full game for them to become ‘ match fit’ a little early to be too harsh on Warburton.
Agree. Warburton got better as the game progressed. He is a player that rises to the big games. It’s great that there are headaches for the selectors.
We’re all losers once that sport is still in existence
Please explain your prejudice, Mr. Garrison, or is it just the vacuous comment it first appears?
Brutal sport & I hate all d over the top coverage it gets..
I went to Ireland v Australia in Brisbane once & it was d worst sporting event I’d ever been to, just stop start garbage
Warburton is getting really unfair criticism. He played well in a very tough game the can not be compared to the other two games. He was everywhere despite his lack of match fitness a d showed great pace to be on Norths shoulder and was denied by three defenders hanging off him. I know we are looking for ways of starting Sean O’Brien and Heaslip but let’s also be realistic and unbiased in assessing performances.