Omokhuale & Royer join Saracens as Corrigan stays
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BBC News
9 minutes ago
- BBC News
Rugby Union Weekly: Wallabies deny Lions series whitewash
The final Test match of this series had everything - drama, lightning, stoppages and monsoon like conditions which made it a very eventful match between the Lions and the Wallabies in the end the weather appeared to favour the home side as Australia won 22-12 on the night – with Andy Farrell's side taking the series victory is joined by former Lions, Andy Nicol and Alex Cuthbert, as well as Aussie great Stephen Moore and ABC broadcaster Quentin Hull with all the on the whistle guys take shelter from the crazy downpours and ask what went right for the Wallabies and what does this result mean for the Lions legacy?!
The Independent
11 minutes ago
- The Independent
How Australia and the Lions handled weather delay in third Test: ‘We had a plan'
Australia head coach Joe Schmidt has revealed that his side had planned for the possibility of a weather delay after the Wallabies got the better of the British and Irish Lions in a chaotic third Test. The encounter in Sydney was paused for 40 minutes early in the second half after two lightning strikes were recorded within 10 kilometres of Accor Stadium. The officials took the players from the pitch and into the dressing rooms, while fans in the ground were advised to head inside for cover on a day of inclement weather. While the Lions were caught off guard by the interruption, which came moments after they had lost lock James Ryan to a serious head injury, Australia seemed rather more certain of their processes. The hosts emerged as quickly as possible once a restart had been agreed to make the most of a 10-minute warm-up period, and subsequently extended their advantage to power to a 22-12 victory and salvage pride after a 2-1 series defeat. 'It's certainly one of the more bizarre [games I've been involved in],' Wallabies boss Schmidt said. 'We had been warned that there might be a bit of lightning, so we had a plan and with that plan we made sure that guys kept moving. We had different guys rotating on and off the bikes, we'd a couple of bikes. 'We'd four balls in the changing room so guys could throw them around, so that guys could stay connected. The rest of the time, it was just trying to get us organised for the restart. 'We knew we had a penalty to touch and a plan, until it didn't work. The players stayed dialled in very well.' Australia led 8-0 at the time of the game's suspension, with further tries from Max Jorgensen and Tate McDermott ensuring that they went on to secure victory. The Lions endured a disrupted 80 minutes that also included the loss of Maro Itoje and Tommy Freeman following failed head injury assessments, along with the worrying incident involved Ryan that the Irish lock appears to have escaped without serious injury. 'Rigor mortis was setting in at one stage there for the lads,' head coach Andy Farrell chuckled. 'I suppose that is what you come to expect with a schedule like the Lions schedule. We have seen it all now haven't we. 'We were trying to work out what the rules were and what was going to happen, at one stage it looked like it was going be 45 minutes then it was pulled back to 30 minutes. There were updates constantly coming in but the lads stayed relaxed enough, had five minutes of a warm-up and got the show back on the road. What came off the back of that is Australia hit the ground running and thoroughly deserved their win.' Footage from the Lions dressing room showed a couple of Lions players on their phones and others perched on bean bags, while their re-emergence came several minutes after that of their opponents. Farrell insisted, though, that his side were fully ready for the resumption. He said: 'We agreed on 10 minutes for the warm-up and through our advice from our experts in that field, we made the call to come out five minutes before and stay out there so that we would be ready to go.' Providing a player's perspective, Lions forward Tadhg Beirne said: 'It was just a bit strange, I suppose. I've never experienced something like that, there was a bit of the unknown. 'We were kind of told it was going to be 45 minutes, so you start trying to relax a little bit before having to get back up for it, and then all of a sudden it was, 'you are out in seven minutes', so all of a sudden you are trying to get switched on to focus again. That's the challenge of it. I've never experienced it before, but I have now so I'll know what to expect next time, I guess.'
BBC News
11 minutes ago
- BBC News
Farrell 'unbelievably proud' of Lions series win
Head coach Andy Farrell said the British and Irish Lions were disappointed to have lost the final Test to Australia but should be "unbelievably proud" to win the side had been seeking to clinch the Lions' first 3-0 series whitewash since the 1927 tour of Argentina but failed to compete with Australia's physicality as the hosts ran out 22-12 winners in torrential defeat also ended the Lions' 100% winning record on Australian soil as they failed to emulate the 1974 side, who were the last Lions team to go unbeaten on tour."There's going to be frustration there - all along we've said we want to win every game," said Farrell, who did not rule out coaching the side again."The best team won on the night. It might take one or it might take two beers but they'll be unbelievably proud of what they've achieved on this tour. On reflection we can be unbelievably proud."The legacy for us is in the changing room. The togetherness - it's been an absolute delight."We've played some outstanding rugby and that's accumulated into a performance that last week ended up being a moment that will stay with us forever."The Lions secured their first series win since the 2013 tour of Australia, but did speak openly about wanting to win Wallabies - who for the first time in their history failed to qualify for the knockout stage of a Rugby World Cup in 2023 - improved as the series went on after starting slow in the first Test in Schmidt's side were much improved in the second Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground, but could not hold on to an 18-point lead as Hugo Keenan's last-minute try snatched a series win for the tourists. In Sydney the Wallabies, ranked sixth in the world, scored three tries and looked in control of the game for large periods to show further improvement."I said in the week it would be insulting to question Australia's place on the series and I repeat that," Farrell added."Special things are going to happen to Australia over the next 18 months. They have special athletes and special players."Australia only played one warm-up game against Fiji in the lead-up to the series, which former Lion Andy Nicol believes was a big factor in their slow start in Brisbane."Joe Schmidt has got this wrong or Australian Rugby Union have got this wrong," he told BBC's Rugby Union Weekly podcast."The preparation was just not right. We have said on so many occasions it is not like the Lions have crept up. The Lions has been 12 years in the making."They will absolutely rue the lack of preparation for that first Test because we have seen in Test two and three they are very competitive and in some cases a match or even better than the Lions."The fact the Lions won that first Test at a canter allowed them to be down in that second Test and come back and take the lead in the 79th minute."That has been hugely important and has won the Test series."
