The Lions player ratings from a scintillating, series-sealing second Test in Melbourne

The 42

a day ago

Backs:
Hugo Keenan — 8: Was already one of the Lions' standout performers before his match-winning, series-sealing score. Assured even during the game's more chaotic moments, Keenan made one particularly memorable rescue of a near dead-cert 50-22 on 44 minutes and justified his retention of the 15 jersey throughout.
Tommy Freeman — 6: Was merely the fall guy for his yellow card after repeated Lions infringements — it proved an extremely costly yellow, but it was a team yellow. Powerful carry almost immediately upon his return led to Tom Curry's try. Was otherwise well shackled in attack, but solid as always in defence — although his day was made slightly easier by the withdrawal through injury of Harry Potter.
Huw Jones — 7: His penalty concession ultimately led to the Wallabies' first try, but Jones picked a lovely line for his own powerful finish at a crucial juncture for the Lions. Like Freeman, was limited in his opportunities to cut loose, but put in some big defensive hits.
Bundee Aki — 7: Conceded a poor penalty for hands in the ruck despite a clear warning by Andrea Piardi, but came up big with ball in hand as the game threatened to ebb away from the Lions in the final quarter. Was beaten by Joseph-Aukuso Sua'ali'i for Tom Wright's first-half try, and again at closer quarters for a half-break in the second half, but also made a more ferocious defensive contribution than any other Lions back. In all, probably a 6.5 but decimals are forbidden in The 42′s ratings and Aki's work rate across 80 minutes brought him closer to a 7 than a 6 in this writer's opinion.
James Lowe — 6: A sublime assist for Tadhg Beirne's second-half score salvaged what had a below-average performance by Lowe's standards to that point, with one notable knock-on under little pressure from Australian kick-chasers and one poor exit kick of his own. As was the case with Freeman on the wing opposite him, the Ireland star didn't get many chances with ball in hand.
Finn Russell — 6: More of throwback Finn Russell performance than his standout efforts of recent months. Two exceptional kicks to touch from penalties, one of which led to a try, combined with a poor kick out on the full and a bad day from the tee when it counted. Loads of class, plenty of errors. Virtually rock-solid in defence all night, as is usually the case with Russell.
Jamison Gibson-Park — 7: Produced a couple of stray box-kicks and it wasn't his best night defensively, but the Leinster and Ireland scrum-half ultimately steered the Lions to victory with moments of quality from scrum-half that he makes look routine, including his inch-perfect tee-up for Keenan at the death. Like Aki, Gibson-Park imposed his class in the final quarter especially.
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Forwards:
Andrew Porter — 7: Enjoyed himself in the scrum without quite receiving the rewards that the Lions' immediate dominance probably warranted. Barreled on one occasion by Will Skelton but otherwise made 16 tackles in just 54 minutes. Was unlucky for Jake Gordon's try in that he was impeded by the backpedalling Andrea Piardi — on another day, it could have been a Lions scrum instead of a Wallabies score.
Dan Sheehan — 8: The Lions most impactful carrier in the first half, Sheehan's Superman dive for his tap-and-go try was as ingenious as it was athletic, as he effectively scored on a legal loophole. Excellent in the lineout and part of a dominant scrum.
Tadhg Furlong — 7: Made an early knock-on and was beaten around the fringes a couple of times, including on Jake Gordon's try, so not quite as impressive as he was last week. But still mighty at times, particularly in the scrum where he dominated both Wallaby looseheads before being called ashore.
Maro Itoje (captain) — 8: A worthy Lions captain's performance with a key jackal penalty, forward impetus at pivotal times, and an another exhibition in the lineout. Where the Lions missed plenty of tackles, their skipper made 20 of them and was inspirational in defence.
Ollie Chessum — 6: A workmanlike performance without many standout moments. Joe McCarthy's impact in the loose was pronounced.
Tadhg Beirne — 8: Led the Lions with 11 carries, finished his try superbly, and was talismanic in the final quarter as the Lions tried and tried again to break the Wallabies' resistance. Has effectively flipped the bird, on back-to-back weeks, at those who questioned Andy Farrell's decision to start him in the first Test.
Tom Curry — 7: His try was also well-finished but Curry's saving tackle with his final act contributed almost equally to the Lions' clinching of the series in Melbourne. Those were two huge moments in a game in which he had few: he saw precious little of the ball but was typically diligent in defence, making 15 tackles in 54 minutes.
Jack Conan — 7: Slipped up a couple of tackles early but wound up making 24 of them. Was central to a choke tackle that turned Australia over from restart on 11 minutes. Didn't have quite the same attacking impact as last week and saw a try of his own slip from his grasp, but provided a neat assist for Curry's key score.
Replacements:
Rónan Kelleher — 7: Made a bigger impact around the park upon his introduction than he did last week and enjoyed a far more fruitful day at the lineout.
Ellis Genge — 8: Carried like a sicko off the bench and dominated Wallaby replacement Angus Bell in the scrum. There was a galling knock-on, yes, but the Lions would not have won this Test without Genge's ballistic impact.
Will Stuart — 6: A silly penalty concession for an extra roll on the ground killed the momentum of a brilliant Lions attack on 70 minutes. Sloppy in possession on a couple of occasions but made one powerful burst and picked up where Furlong left off in the scrum and lit opponents up with a couple of huge hits.
James Ryan — 8: Came on and basically went mad for 25 minutes. Ryan at his menacing best.
Jac Morgan — 6: Could have botched it with his breakdown intervention in the lead-up to Keenan's try — but didn't. Had made a solid contribution on both sides of the ball to that point, particularly in the attacking breakdown.
Alex Mitchell — n/a: Not used.
Owen Farrell — 5: Got bounced by Harry Wilson upon his introduction and didn't appear to materially affect the game. A player of his intellect and standing among teammates was probably far more influential in the Lions' victory than he appeared on TV at first glance, so 5 may well be a nonsense in reality, but this writer can't award marks for intangibles such as communication skills.
Blair Kinghorn — 7: One scintillating line-break was spoiled by Stuart's rollover penalty concession but it energised the Lions, and Kinghorn was effervescent thereafter. Will start the third Test, possibly in place of James Lowe on the left wing.