Lions sober up in Sydney as Aussie anger over 'the incident' continues
Monday is a day for much-needed recovery, with training and media obligations shelved. After the rain and cooler temperatures of Melbourne, the sun on the skin in Sydney has been very welcome.
It's back to work tomorrow though, with Andy Farrell's men determined to finish this series with a third win.
The last time the Lions enjoyed a series whitewash was back in 1927 when they won all four of their Tests in Argentina. So it truly would be a slice of history if they can complete the clean sweep at the 83,500-capacity Accor Stadium on Saturday.
It will be intriguing to see how Farrell selects for this one. 'Everyone wants to play,' said out-half Finn Russell on Saturday night after the Lions had clinched the series.
Farrell is usually not one for giving out starts for sentimental reasons. He is more aware than anyone of how precious a Lions Test cap is. If someone has earned the jersey, Farrell will be reticent to hand it to someone else for the sake of giving them a chance.
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Joe McCarthy and Mack Hansen, who missed the second Test with foot injuries, have been hoping to return for this third clash with the Wallabies, while it's still unclear how Garry Ringrose is recovering from the effects of his concussion. Even if those Irishmen aren't available, Farrell has plenty of options to consider. A player as good as Josh van der Flier has yet to feature in the Tests.
Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
But it's clear that the Lions won't be treating this weekend as a bit of fun before flying home. They set a target of winning the series 3-0 and Farrell will be holding them to the highest standards.
'I think if we can make it a 3-0 series, that's amazing,' said Russell. Everyone's going to be gunning for that. There might be changes next week to the team, I don't know what Faz is going to do. But I think it will be a brilliant occasion for everyone playing.'
While the Lions nurse their hangovers today following all the celebrations, there are plenty of Australians still wallowing in the misery of the narrow second Test defeat.
The fallout has been bitter in some quarters. Joe Schmidt was livid about the final clearout decision that went against the Wallabies and many in the Aussie media have a similar view of Jac Morgan's actions.
'ROBBED,' read the headline on the back page of the Sunday Telegraph, while pundits like former Wallabies centre Morgan Tirinui have been demanding an explanation from World Rugby.
Not that this stuff is limited just to the media. Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh has publicly backed Schmidt's comments about the last-gasp decision and demanded that World Rugby respond to the questions about Morgan's clearout.
Rather sadly, this focus on a refereeing decision has dominated the discourse after a thrilling Test match, one of the best in Lions history. The Wallabies were brilliant for a large part of the game at a packed MCG but there hasn't been much discussion of that in Australia since. Most eyes have simply been on Andrea Piardi and his refereeing team.
Second Test referee Andrea Piardi. Billy Stickland / INPHO Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
It took just 30 seconds of today's Wallabies press conference with Nick Frost and Max Jorgensen for what some in Australia are calling 'the incident' to come up.
When the chat moved on, the Wallabies pair underlined their determination to finish this series with a bang and make their fans proud.
'We're keen to rip in,' said second row Frost. 'It's a massive match. You're going out there and playing in front of your friends, family, for your nation and on top of that, playing against the Lions – it's a massive game.'
The Wallabies are up for it, so as the Lions get back into training at the North Sydney Oval tomorrow, there is still business to get done in this series.
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Irish Times
a few seconds ago
- Irish Times
Home are the heroines: thousands turn out for Dublin ladies All-Ireland homecoming
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The 42
an hour ago
- The 42
Dublin's first-half storm, Meath regret, and what next after one-sided All-Ireland final?
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Irish Times
3 hours ago
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Wallabies can take heart from Lions series for litmus Tests against South Africa
If Australian rugby is to take a key learning from the British and Irish Lions tour and adopt a credo for the upcoming Rugby Championship and the road to the 2027 World Cup, Will Skelton nailed it at half-time on Saturday: 'We don't take no itshay.' Skelton's performance was as big as he was in the Wallabies' stirring victory in Sydney. But Skelton's fighting words to his team - 'Keep fighting. Keep fighting for each other. Keep fighting for the jersey' - and the pig Latin catchcry that followed was a crudity that offered perfect clarity to Joe Schmidt's team. By taking no shit from the Lions – showing aggression, attacking from every angle, hurting their enemy in mind and body – Australia rattled their opposition and won ascendancy. Unlike in Brisbane where they found fire only when 24-5 down, or Melbourne where they let the initiative slip when leading 23-5, the Wallabies this time showed the ruthless edge fans have waited so long for, leading for all 80 minutes. As they set their jaws for the flight to South Africa on Friday and twin litmus Tests against the world champions, Australia should be confident of upsetting rugby's number one side. The Springboks have only lightly tuned up for this series with two cantered victories against Italy and one over Georgia. Conversely, the Wallabies are fit and full of fire after smashing the Lions and finding their mongrel mojo. READ MORE The touring squad Schmidt names on Thursday must be as bold as his Sydney 23. He will be without his two first-pick outhalves, with young Tom Lynagh ruled out with another concussion after being illegally cleared out by Dan Sheehan in Sydney, and Noah Lolesio out for the season with a neck injury sustained in the Fiji Test in July. He may also lose his preferred scrumhalf Jake Gordon to the hamstring twinges that cost him an appearance in the third Test. That means the axis of attack in South Africa will again fall to unfamiliar alchemies being forged in the Test furnace. Ben Donaldson will get his chance to start at number 10, after coming off the bench in Brisbane and Sydney, with veteran James O'Connor, 35, the likely wildcard. Nic White's call to retire post-Sydney inspired his side but the little general might be needed for two last outings against the Springboks. Bundee Aki is tackled by Australia's Rob Valetini during the second Test at the MCG in Melbourne. Photograph: William West/AFP via Getty Images Vitally, Rob Valetini will tour. But it is Skelton's name that must be first on the team sheet. Without him and Valetini in the Lions opener in Brisbane, Australia looked timid and tepid. Yet in every minute Skelton was on the field in the Tests that followed, the Wallabies were bossing the scoreboard. Skelton neatly encapsulates the enigma of Australian rugby this past decade. Born in New Zealand to Samoan parents, he was raised in western Sydney and played rugby league for most of his early years before finding union in his mid-teens. Unlike most, he stuck at it, was brought into the Waratahs fold by mentor Michael Cheika aged 21 (his second start was against the 2013 Lions) and won a Test debut in 2014. Skelton's size 17s walked out on Australia in 2017. With Saracens in the English Premiership and, more recently, La Rochelle in France's Top 14, he has since won four Champions Cup medals in Europa. For six years, as Australian rugby hit the skids and their biggest stars joined the exodus overseas, Skelton existed as the Wallabies' lost colossus. Not until 2021 – 1,814 days after his last Test – did he return to the XXXXL gold jersey. A mixed bag of international cameos since then has gradually roused the sleeping giant. Yet at age 33 he has played only 33 Tests. This fortnight has shown the power Skelton wields to inspire his team-mates while intimidating their enemies. Now the big man is rolling, the juggernaut must continue. Schmidt is schmoozing Skelton to delay his return to France to fly on to South Africa. And Rugby Australia chiefs, chief executive Phil Waugh and high performance boss Peter Horne, have told the coach there is 'no impediment to select whoever he wants' from Australians playing around the world. Horne says the Giteau Law – in which only overseas players with 60 Tests could be selected for Test duty – is 'redundant'. Former Wallaby Quade Cooper has long reckoned, 'if we want to compete with the world we need to select the world's best players, regardless of where they play'. It is likely too late to keep three stars of the Sydney Test from heading abroad – Taniela Tupou is joining Racing 92 while man of the match Tom Hooper is off to Exeter and Langi Gleeson to Montpellier – but after years of selecting only home-based talent and not stars plying their trade abroad, the gates are at last open to the barbarians. That includes Skelton. With him at the helm, Australia can challenge South Africa at home, put Argentina to the sword in Townsville and Sydney and even wrest back the Bledisloe Cup from New Zealand for the first time since 2002. And that's no itshay. – Guardian
