British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell focused on rugby series sweep after Melbourne victory
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British & Irish Lions' fullback Hugo Keenan celebrating after scoring the winning try on July 26.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MELBOURNE – British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell is determined to keep his team focused on winning the final rugby Test against Australia, after the tourists wrapped up the series 2-0 by beating the Wallabies 29-26 in Melbourne on July 26.
Hugo Keenan’s last-minute try secured the win at Melbourne Cricket Ground that gave the Lions an unassailable lead in the three-match series.
“The plan will stay the same,” Farrell told reporters. “Win or lose, we trust the plan ahead.”
It was the Lions’ first series win since they beat the Wallabies 2-1 in 2013, and Farrell believes the achievement has earned his players the right to be considered Lions legends.
“We’ve made history, haven’t we? So does that warrant that kind of tag?” he said. “Why not? We came to do what we’ve done tonight and we should all celebrate.”
Captain Maro Itoje added: “These are one of the moments in your life that you will cherish, this will live long in the memory.
“Often in sport you have to move on to the next thing and focus on what’s next, focus on the next challenge and no doubt we will do that after tonight’s celebration, but every now and again it’s important to savour the moment.”
The Lions had to do it the hard way in Melbourne, coming back from 23-5 down in the first half after James Slipper and Jake Gordon tries, before narrowing the deficit to six points just before the break.
Tadhg Beirne’s bulldozing try just before the hour mark reduced the gap further and Keenan’s last-minute effort decided the match and the series.
Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt was adamant the try should not have stood, pointing to a high clean-out in the lead-up by Jac Morgan on Carlo Tizzano. But their protests were waved away by Italian referee Andrea Piardi.
Schmidt said contact was made above the shoulders, which made it illegal.
“Our perspective is, we felt it was a decision that doesn’t really live up to the big player safety push that they’re talking about,” he said.
“So that’s what we’ve seen, and we’ve watched a number of replays from different angles, and so it is what it is. We just have to accept it.”
In contrast, Farrell saw nothing wrong with the incident.
“I thought it was a brilliant clean-out,” he insisted.
Despite Schmidt’s obvious frustration at seeing victory snatched from their grasp, he knows he must now lift the team for the third and final Test in Sydney on Aug 2.
It is a dead rubber, but pride is at stake for his young side who were a level up in Melbourne from their passive performance during the first Test in Brisbane.
“I’ve told the team how proud I am of them. This group is growing. To stand up and deliver what they did against some of the world’s best players, I was just immensely proud,” said Schmidt.
“They were broken at the end, but one of the things you’ve got to do is keep resolve and keep going forward.
“We can’t, and we won’t, wallow in self-pity because we didn’t get the result.
“It’s a blow in the short term, but you can’t get more motivated than what the players demonstrated here,” he added.
“I always felt we had the game to challenge them and we showed that. I think their experience allowed them to stay in the contest and execute their plan.” REUTERS, AFP
