Lions hang on but few players push Test claims

First Nations and Pasifika XV (14) 19

Reilly, Uru, Beale 2 Tries

Irish and British Lions (14)

The British and Irish Lions continue to win on Australian soil after going through a difficult examination with First Nations and Pasifika.

The Lions took a raunchy lead into what appeared to be a commanding 14-0 lead on a nervy night at Marvel Stadium, but things started to go wrong once more.

The Scotland wing, who had been parachuted in for this game, was emotional as Graham left the field shortly after he scored because he was injured.

When wing Triston Reilly and flanker Seru Uru crossed for converted scores to level the match at 14-14 at the break, Pasifika immediately rose into contention.

Osborne’s second try gave the Lions a significant advantage over the hosts’ physicality, but the Lions were able to regain lead.

Duhan van der Merwe scored from captain Owen Farrell’s lovely delayed pass just after the hour mark, and the underdogs roared back. This was his fifth try of the tour.

With ten minutes remaining, Rob Leota piled over after another bombardment to give Pasifika the lead. Much to the Lions’ relief, the conversion was omitted, and the gap was five.

He would have disappointed if head coach Andy Farrell had looked for men to play in the second Test on Saturday.

By far, Pasifika openside Charlie Gamble was the outstanding player.

The flanker’s excellent play was repeated by him in the previous performance against the Lions earlier in the tour.

The Lions had taken a promising first step by taking a commanding lead and appearing to be going to “torch” their foes.

Reilly’s sin-binned for a high shot on Graham helped the Lions’ early momentum.

Then, Osborne, who received a kindly bounce and scored, took advantage of a dink over the top from Farrell, who had a strong game. The conversion was made by Fin Smith.

Smith flung a long pass out to Graham, who continued to have a remarkable try-scoring record for each team he plays for.

He was sidelined before the first quarter was over because he did not get to play for the Lions for much longer.

When Blair Kinghorn, who was competing for a test spot on Saturday, got loose with a pass, Reilly intercepted it and ran away before scoring with Kurtley Beale converting.

Physically speaking, Pasifika were breathtaking, enormous men fighting in vain for the Pacific Islands’ heritage. The Lions were irritated by some of the tackles they made.

The tourists were harmed by the outstanding Gamble’s work on the ground and his aggressive behavior in contact, as well as another outstanding Gamble that was in full flow against the Lions for the second time.

Another massive unit, Uru, blasted over, and they were then thrust back into the Lions 22 by the gargantuan Taniela Tupou in the main. The totemic Beale converted, making it 14-14 instead of 0-14.

James Ryan received a yellow card for an illegal attempt to slow down Pasifika’s hammer away at the line in the lead up to Uru’s score, which only made things worse for the Lions.

And it might have been worse since Kinghorn was being intercepted a second time before the break. The man who jumped on his pass, Jack Debreczeni, did not have the required speed to complete the journey.

At this point, there were only a few positive things for the Lions, but Scott Cummings was one of the few to make his case for Saturday consideration.

There may be a bench spot for a lock with Joe McCarthy out with an injury, but the Scotland lock made it through a lot.

Soon after the restart, he gained another level of influence when Kinghorn found Osborne for his second of the night when they moved the ball out the backline.

Now it’s a five-point game, and Van der Merwe tries to extend the lead to ten points with a clever blitz from Farrell.

But it never felt at ease when Pasifika were so driven. Leota went over from close range with nine minutes left, and the chance of losing to the Lions was very real.

Leota’s try was not converted by Pasifika, who did not succeed, but did finish strong, but not quite strongly enough.

Replacements: McLeod, Pearce, Doge, Vocevoce, Leota, Goddard, Debreczeni, and Asiata

Kinghorn, Graham, Osborne, Farrell (capt), Van der Merwe, F Smith, White, Schoeman, George, Bealham, Ryan, Cummings, Morgan, Van der Flier, Pollock, and other Irish and British Lions

Ben O’Keeffe (NZ) is Assistant Referee 1.

Andrea Piardi (Ita), Assistant Referee 2.

Marius Jonker (SA) TMO