Let us know what you thought of the 1st Test.
Which players stood out? Will there be any changes to the team next week? How close was your prediction to the result?
Give the match a rating out of 10 and then share your thoughts in the comments below.
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#pumped.
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All Blacks are too good. However the lions also did some good stuff out there, it was great game to watch for most parts, just a shame we lost.
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Great game to watch but ultimately a bit deflated after the second half.
Lions created some great chances, scoring one of the great Lions tries, but it’s been the story of the tour so far not being able to finish them off. Itoje has to start next week, great impact off the bench. Maybe Warburton to slow the ball down a little? Not sure who for though.
All Blacks just too good and the worry is they will only get better through next two weeks.
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POM he was picked for his doggiest, not there throughout the match. Would like to see a Lawes, Itoje second row with Henderson on the bench, won’t see it as both in last mid-week game.
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good game, couldn’t give 8.5, …9 for 1st half 8 fr second, still say Webb for Murray, you can box kick to the ABs all day but you cant paly without the ball , took Webb 3 mins to do what Murray wouldn’t do in a month of Sundays, would have been better to snipe and keep it tighter up front for longer periods imo, a change of lawes and itjo as starters , wont solve the problem of no breaks from a set play, nobody quick enuf except maybe Joseph , is it worth the gamble is the question, cant see many other options ,North for Daly maybe, as a bit off,Tips could have kept one or two moves moving imo ,such an eye for an opening but at whose expense? …if Webb doesn’t start he deserves a half at least . All said i can’t see any of these happening
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At the end of day, the AB’s controlled the ball better and worked harder to get it back. Some great play from the Lions and the attacking play was much better than I expected (mostly due to the back three).
I don’t think I would change the starting back line, but I would consider Nowell on the bench instead of Halfpenny.
In the forwards, Itoje to start with Lawes or Henderson on the bench. Didn’t see Wyn Jones do any breakdown work, which Itoje did as soon as he came on.
Faletau and O’Brien need to carry more. Something else that Itoje can add to the team.
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I’d start Itoje and lawes. Kruis was uncharacteristically awful while AWJ was largely anonymous, but it’s cut throat at this level. Missed a Warbs type character for breakdown work to either jackal or slow it down. Thought mahoney and O’brien were too quiet there. Back three went well, but need far more attacking threat off the bench than Halfpenny.. He either starts or not in the 23, he’s never going to better Liam Williams attacking threat. Farrell at 12 didn’t work.
14 points shipped in lack of concentration alone..
Ultimately I don’t see any changes going forward that would convince me of a lions win, sadly.
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A great game between two great teams. Back 3 certainly justified, and I was really impreese by Davies. But quiet opinion I’ve had for a while, and I completely decided today. Teo isn’t good enough. He does all the flashy stuff, the highlight reel, but he doesn’t work enough off the ball for me. I can’t remember him making a single support run over the game, or the series, which was a reason Leinster let him go imo.
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It gives me no pleasure to say that I called this nearly right (AB´s by 12) because of their power, pace and precision. They turn defence into attack so much more quickly, and don´t butcher scoring opportunities. Lions were lucky that Ben Smith went off early as AB´s weren´t quite as penetrating with Cruden at 10 as they were with Barrett. Read was immense and made Faletau look ordinary..
To have any chance at all next week Lions have to get players over the ball much quicker and drive NZ back more aggressively if they get there first. Didn´t expect the pack to be as comprehensively outmuscled as they were. Both O´Mahoney and O´Brien were anonymous, but so was Warburton when he came on. Kruis and AWJ were comfortably controlled by the NZ second row and Itoje needs to start next week to give us some go-forward. I would have Lawes on the bench. Don´t suppose Launchbury happens to be on holiday in NZ by any chance? Sexton looked like a rabbit caught in the headlights when he came on, Teo has never convinced me that he is class.. Davies played really well and should stay but I would like to see JJ get a run. No idea why Osiboy thinks that Daly was “a bit off”. His in and out to set up the first try was superb, and he is in far more confident form than North. Would have Nowell on the bench instead of Halfpenny and Haskell or Stander instead of Warburton. I would also definitely start with Webb, who is far more spiky and in your face than Murray. However, regardless of who we pick I think the AB´s will be better next week and will probably win by at least 20, although Lions will be hoping that they get a bit more of the rub of the green from the ref. Pyper is definitely a southern hemisphere ref. He completely ignored players diving right over the ball to shut it off on the floor or creeping along the side of mauls to get on the wrong side and disrupt possession. There were times when I thought Read had inherited McCaw´s cloak of invisibility. Still, when it comes down to it we were beaten by a better team and will continue to be so until the IRB create a schedule for these tours that allows the Lions to put out their best side playing at their peak rather than looking at it simply as an opportunity to swell the coffers of the NZ RFU. Geese that lay golden eggs are easily killed by neglect or overwork.
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By saying a bit off” means just that, he {Daly} did nothing wrong but was not involved as much as he could have been , prob a 6 where other backs were an 7 except Davies and Williams poss 8s, i called a 12pts AB win and can see it again unless the likes of Joseph , Webb and Tips have game time, “xfactor”players,again tho, can’t see it happnin’
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Osiboy
Daly did some good things, but he also let in 2 tries.
More or less agree with yr prior summary.
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Chaps have we all got the Barns and Harrison gloom and doom attitude. Those two need to emigrate to NZ as they see nothing good about British and Irish rugby. Much praise from Barnes for Barret’s one hand pick up but very little about Watson’s run through half the NZ team.
I don’t think Harrison has ever played the game. Barnes seems to always be in the why wasn’t I recognised as the best 10 in the world mood. Both would not be out of place commentating for NZ. Sky need to get a more partisan pair in the future. It might help towards lifting the players in times like now. Who is paying for their jolly to NZ
Kieran Read’s interview summed up the game. He looked thankful that NZ managed to win what for him was a very tough encounter. He also praised the BIL’s first try which was more than the chuckle brothers
I’m still trying to figure out how a NZ went down with the ball facing the BIL within their 10 mtrs and with a ruck formed they came away with the bal. The BIL’s first try was as good as any NZ effort. If it wasn’t for the missed kick from NZ by LW and the missed penalty by Farrell it would have been a much closer game and we know how the AB can fade when under constant attack
Stats are Lions – 5 chances, score twice.
NZ – 3 chances, score 3.
Lets be positive and hope the BIL feel as I do that they can beat NZ by being more clinical
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Mike
Bit defensive. Dunno abt Harrison? Barnes can be a bit run with the hares & hounds @ times, but with occasional insights to contradict his contradictions @ other times e.g. The Lions should play territory, when he was a ‘running’ fly1/2. As for yr contention that ‘we know how the AB can fade when under constant attack’, like when? They’ve lost 4 in the last 4 (YRS)! Maybe it’s not a case of ‘we’ but rather your holding this view?
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Don. Not defensive but optimistic. I’ve always taught my players ‘ Never give up . If you go out thinking you will loose then invariably you will but if you think you will win then more often than not you will be right ‘. Also the fades I can recall were the four games you mentioned i.e. against England, South Africa, Australia and Ireland . I think if the Lions go out thinking they will win and become more clinical, cut out their mistakes then they will win but then I’m forever an optimist. Five v Three opportunities could it be that the opposition are catching up. I would agree if NZ had the Lions opportunities they would have scored 5 tries but they didn’t. Listen again to Read’s and Hansen’s post match interview to hear what they felt after the game. I don’t think it is as clear cut as what those watching in the wings feel and report. Still we will know come Saturday lunch time (GMT)
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Mike
Agree optimism is a good thing. No point going out believing that you’re going to lose. If you do so, then you probably will lose. However, you also need to be realistic. NZ controlled the game 60/40, their skills, e.g. Read’s try resultant offload, speed, accuracy & variety in mixing the game up in attack & their efficient, cohesive defence – well mostly in the latter’s case – were simply better. It was their 1st real blow out & history suggests that they’ll get better by Sat. The Lions simply MUST win the breakdown to have any chance IMO. They must do what they’ve been talking about for weeks now & nail try scoring ops; e.g when Watson cut through 2/3 defenders before being grounded, he threw the ball to no one instead of waiting that fraction before passing to his supporting team mate. Probably butchered one there. Their thinking under pressure is/was suspect under AB pressure for me. Still, Sat’s a clean (& possibly last?) slate, so we’ll see how it unfolds.
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Can Davies play at 12 Welsh guys enlighten me.
If so I would like to se JJ at 13
Was it me but Farrell didn’t look fit had a poor game and Sexton was no better
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Farrell was certainly not very influential but it is hard to control a game when you are getting very little ball and when you do you are on the back foot and it comes closely accompanied by two All Blacks. I thought his defence was sound.
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Yes, can play at 12 , think he played v argies @12 plus to replace shanklin in a game I cant remember v who , both in his first year or so I think, I get where your comin from but if Howler has anything to do with it,.. no way! ,……wouldn’t mind seeing it myself, we need line breaks at pace ,..give Jiffy a bell!
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I thought all the backs did well behind a well-beaten pack. To expect them to go forward and create anything on the back foot is just unrealistic.
For me the front row was desperately disappointing. I’m an England fan and an ex-front-rower, but I have to tell you that Mako does not cut the mustard. Marler would be far better. I think the Launchbury chickens are coming home to roost now. We desperately need some athleticism in our 2nd row, and I would start Lawes and Itoje next week, with Henderson off the bench. George K (of whom I am a great admirer) was simply out-muscled and out-classed. he will learn from this.
We are so desperately missing Billy V at the base of the scrum.
Daly was excellent.
But here’s the thing: everyone keeps banging on about the quality of Murray’s kicking, but how many kick-chases did we actually recover?
I thought his kicks were too long and NZ dominated the recovery. We simply gave them the ball.
I thought our broken play — Daly, Williams, Davies, Watson, Farrell to the fore — was the best aspect of our game.
I think we will get better, but then, so will the Kiwis.
‘Nuff said!
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Yes, the F-row was on back foot as was the 2-row, ,…I said we would not dominate here as we expected and called a12 pt AB Win, with lions not takin chances, ..also that Murray box kickin only looked good, can’t do out without the ball, last team u want to kick/give it to has to b the ABs, and that Webb was needed for snipin and scoring trys and that Liam would be player of the series {its usually a welshman lol},irrelevant about missing Billy, he would have gone backwards with the rest of the pack , Toby was prob our best forward , no Welshman would swap him for Billy and visaversa, if LW had not missed that catch he would have been MOM imo and should have been taken off by then anyway and wrapped in cotton wool braided with gold, his work rate was immense , he was knackered,..Watson put at FB , 1/2P wing,; Davies was mom 9 , liam 8, Watson 7.5, Murray7,farrel6.5,sexton6.0,ta’o 7,Daly 7,Webb 8,, ive said all along murray kicking the ball away when its ours,..for ? , the ABs don’t do it ! , do we think we are better or ? Webb and Tips to start as Tips has the best stats in world rugby and he’s a footballer , goes roud walls not into them !
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I think that was pretty much a reflection of the tour so far; opportunities spurned and errors galore. Can’t agree with the praise for LW;aside from the break, which was class, he was poor I thought. Not a reassuring presence under high ball at all. I think Lawes and Itoje stock has risen by not playing and Webb also added something when he came on along with Sinckler. I think this will be a whitewash tour if I’m honest as I just didn’t see any evidence of these plans that Gats and Howley have spoken; the only coach with credit so far Is Farrell for me, Howley in particular has been exposed again IMO
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the half back pairing needs going , along with AWJ..if SW not fit to start then Tipuric to replace EITHER O Brien or Mahoney with SW DROPPING FROM SQUAD,,probably stick with front row , Keep Kruis with Itoje , DEFINATELY WEBB instead of Murray and i think Russell should take i=over from Farrell , who seems to believe the medias overhyped opinion of him , if SW fit and ready to start he Must start , keep faith with 11 to 15..
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A lot of people calling for Murray to be replaced with Webb? Webb is a good impact player off the bench but he doesn’t control the game as well as Murray. What we have to remember is that Murray didn’t have good ball for large periods because the AB’s were better at the breakdown. When he was box kicking it was mostly part of an exit plan or relieve pressure. If you really think Webb could have done that better you should watch some recent Welsh matches again.
Kruis wasn’t at his best because his second row partner was anonymous and knackered, meaning Kruis had twice as much work to do. Start Itoje instead and have the replacement props start the next test. Keep George for his lineout work with Krutoje.
Nothing wrong with Farrell apart from lack of decent ball. When he did have decent ball he was putting Davies into space (see first break, which should have been finished).
I too would like to see Davies have a start at 12 with JJ outside him, but I don’t think Davies would be as effective as T’eo at halting Sonny Bill?
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Fair dinkum to the Abs. A masterclass by them after only one warm up outing.
Having rewatched the highlights i was encouraged by the ability of the back three to cut lose. When was the last time the abs were so consistently cut apart? Too often the final pass/decision went astray though.
Lions lost it up front. Agreed with the proposed changes above. Itoje and Lawes!
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You enjoyed the match so much AlexD, that you watched it twice?! Fair dinkum indeed. The only thing that was cut apart so consistently was likely yr perception. Were you drinking pints of Delirium @ the time?
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Lions out-Lioned by the AB’s? Expected to dominate @ breakdown, set piece & defence, were the Lions caught out by Hansen’s plan to take it up the guts & @ tempo? Also from resultant outnumbering out wide, outflanking the Lions? NZ had also worked on their scrum by the looks, although they have never really been dominated here in the last 8 yrs. Much talk of wasted opportunities by the Lions & the reshuffling of the deck for Wellington, but it’s how the TEAM performed, not just the individuals. NZ controlled most of the game (60/40) esp in the loose, so the Lions will need to combat this to have any chance nxt week. They will also need to deal with the pace of the game better, so it’s they players who (can?) adapt to this aspect whom should be selected. Also they must be equally adept @ defence and attack. Daly (‘excellent’?), Williams, Watson, Farrell, Kruis & George for e.g., did some good things, but they also too committed too many errors. Daly missed 2 tackles which lead to tries, Watson fumbled too often, despite some good breaks, George got stripped, knocked on & gave away a penalty for ‘lingering’ @ the ruck (Smith simply threw the ball into him), despite, like Krius, giving it his all. The latter seemed largely ineffective to me as did the much vaunted Farrell, missing 2 kicks @ goal. It’s harder going backwards, I (& they now) know, but they’ll have to deal with (likely more similar) pressure in Wellington. They must do better @ not only the breakdown, but cut out errors, giving penalties away & make their opportunities count when in possession rather than kicking them away. The AB’s will expect to win again. If the Lions play as they do too, then it could be all over before 1/2time.
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PS Williams sparked THAT try. Conversely, he dropped a high ball which lead to an Ioane try.
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Guess we’ll have to see how the Lions come back in the next two Don. Never count all your chickens til they’ve hatched.
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I think the tip of the beak is clearly visible Alex. Less chance next week than last. Simply cannot reproduce skills reliably at the same high tempo as the AB’ s , and man for man not good enough.
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AlexD
Well it’s Hansen who needs not to count his chickens & he doesn’t strike me as the complacent type. I too don’t believe in foregone conclusions, but I feel more confident after last Sat’s 1st up game in the series than I did beforehand. History shows that the AB’s tend to get better, but we shall see. Perhaps, as you’ve alluded to previously, if they’d had a few more PI’s in the team last week, they might have posted an additional 10?
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I enjoy reading other people’s opinions on here whether I ageee or disagree , this is what these forums are about. However in my view some perspective is needed. The ABs are the best team in the world and have been for many a year. The Lions are essentially a scratch team, albeit made up for the most part the best players in the home unions, effectively they are a professional baa baa side, so it is not surprising they lose most test series. However, I for one hope that the lions continue for years to come, and I live in hope that our best players gell and beat the opposition.
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Trio
It’s the schedule that was agreed by the various Unions that effects the Lions as much as anything. In 71 & 74 they didn’t seem like scratch sides & as the tours were longer, they had more time to bed in. Therefore, I don’t quite see how they compare to the Baa Baas in this respect. The BB’s only get together for the odd game & it now seems to depend more on whom is available. Anyway, hope in future that the BIL’s get the prep they require & with proper tours – worked out some how? More will all round ? I mean they only tour every 4!
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Here is the lions team I would like to see selected for the next test. I obviously realise it won’t be!
Front row – Marler / Owens / Cole
Second row – Itoje / Kruis
Back row – POM (capt) / Faletau / Tipuric
Half backs – Webb / Farrell
Centres – Tio / Davies
Back three – Nowell / Williams / Daly
Replacements – Mako / George / Furlong
Lawes / Haskell / Murray / Biggar / JJ
When swapping the backs I would like to see the following swaps – Murray for Webb, Biggar for Farrell, JJ for either Tio or Davies or one of the back three if they are dreadful or injured.
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Sorry I need to get Sinckler in so Furlong goes
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Trio
It’s how they play as a team that counts above all, but can see some sense in yr picks. However, I’d go for Lawes (or Hendo?) for Kruis who was too fallible for me. Pretty radical fr row, but tbc.
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Trio
Ctd.. bit late now, as team picked & Gatland had his own ideas & poss a bit much English bias? POM, Kruis were ineffective for me. Prob gone for Itoje, Lawes, altho some of the AWJ flack seems somewhat pointless to me. Have Warbuton &/or O’Brien in the b/row, altho Tuperic interesting & might have got quicker ball? Don’t mind Webb either, but either Biggar (a team combo) or Sexton as Farrell just too orthodox & frankly anonymous last wk. Also I’d put 1/2penny @ f/back & moved Williams to wing in place of Nowell, who got caught out too easily in ‘D’ early doors in the tour. Anyway, done now, so we’ll see.
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To be fair to Williams I would have been surprised if he had caught ‘that’ ball, wet ball coming from a great height & over his shoulder & with the winger bearing down on him !! don’t think he could be criticised too much for that ! just unlucky that it broke to Ioane 🙁 .
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Stesco
Well, may be a bit harsh, but it’s what pros like Williams are paid for. It’s a basic req to catch a ball & IF he had done so, Ioane would NOT have scored. No 2nds I’m afraid, you do it or you don’t… & others caught the ball, in the wet, during the game. His miss effected the game.
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A lot of knee jerk reactions for wholesale changes on here which are entirely unwarranted. Apart from Bringing in Itoje for AWJ, swapping Halfpenny for a more attacking player as discussed before the game.
I don’t think personnel changes are required. What is needed is more aggression and physicality in the contact areas as we got totally dominated in the tight exchanges and that is something that is a result of poor tactics not poor personnel. Fix that and be a bit more clinical with your chances and we would have every chance of turning this around.
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Entirely agree. Thought the biggest difference was in the energy levels between the two teams. Lions need to adapt to the tempo before the next test.
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I completely agree with you Leon that a mentality change is needed at the point of contact and in the breakdown. However, I think there is a question of whether making just that one change to the pack (Itoje for AWJ) will allow Lions to compete from a skill set perspective at the breakdown (noting I do think Itoje has a much greater presence here than AWJ). I suspect we will see a change to the back-row as well – I am a huge fan of O’Brien, but he was invisible at the breakdown. If it is O’Brien out, it wouldn’t surprise me if Sinckler started for his carrying ability.
With regards to some of the suggestions of (many) changes in the backs – I am not sure here. Thought the backs had their best game of the tour, given the quality and amount of possession the Lions had. You can criticize Murray for kicking too much ball away, but it is clearly the game-plan Gatland wants to implement. You can say the game-plan is flawed, but I don’t think you can say the execution was flawed – Murray’s kicking was largely superb.
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If you are planning to pick Sinckler in the back row TFD we are in even more trouble than I thought! Murray kicked to a decent length but as anyone who watches any NZ rugby will tell you this is meat and potatoes to their back three who simply caught it and ran it back with interest. How many times did we actually regain possession? If you think this was a Gatland tactic you may be right but after half an hour it was so clearly flawed that a more astute onfield leadership would have changed it.
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Was really thinking Sinckler might start for Furlong with Warburton/Tipuric in for O’Brien…but I suspect you knew that…
On Murray, the complaints about him just remind me of the complaints Eng fans have about Brown – I think the guy is just doing what the coach wants. If a player has been drilled by the coaching team to box kick bombs and let people compete for it then the player will do that (as they will want to start the next test too – and not doing what the guy who picks the team wants will likely get you dropped). Whilst NZ coped well with the strategy, Murray’s kicks were pretty much all on target – Lions just didn’t manage to win the challenges.
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kicks might be there bread and butter but line outs were not, we won about a third of theirs (probably the onlyy part of our game that was superior). I’d be telling all kicks to be trying to put kicks in the 5m channel and having a daly and watson charging full tilt, even if it bounces out thats still the most chance wed have at getting the ball back in their half…
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We left three tries out there and AWJ has surely played his last test. This was hit opportunity to empty his tank and show stoical leadership, which he didnt.
I think we will be better next week but to win we will need to put them under pressure for 80mins. We have to create doubt in their minds.
So for me Mario for AWJ, Marler for Mako, Jones for George, Warbs for O’Brian, Haskell for POM.
Bench-Mako,George, Lawes, O’Brian, JJ, Sexton and Webb.
God i miss Ben Youngs. With our number 9 options they know whats coming.
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