Lions ease to 36-24 win over proud Brumbies in Canberra

CANBERRA – The British & Irish Lions were made to work, but eased to a 36-24 win over a depleted ACT Brumbies rugby team in Canberra on July 9 in a victory soured by another backline injury.

Lions fullback Blair Kinghorn came off early in the first half, and spent the rest of the match icing his left knee at Canberra Stadium. Kinghorn’s injury is another headache for coach Andy Farrell ahead of the first Wallabies test next week, having already lost Elliot Daly for the three-match series.

With lock Maro Itoje recalled as captain and fly-half Finn Russell directing traffic, Farrell fielded a line-up tipped to match his team for the series opener.

They had a poor start, conceding a try in the opening minutes, but scored five themselves to notch their fourth successive win on their Australian tour following victories over Western Force, Queensland Reds and the New South Wales Waratahs.

Ollie Chessum, James Lowe and Marcus Smith scored tries in the first half, with Garry Ringrose and Josh van der Flier added two more after the break. “The Brumbies were very good today. They challenged us throughout the whole game,” said Itoje.

“Obviously, there are still things for us to work on and tidy up. We need to be more accurate in the opposition 22, but overall, I think it was a step forward.”

The Brumbies were lacking virtually all of their Wallabies players but produced a contest on a cold night in Canberra, with tries from Tuaina Taii Tualima, Corey Toole, Hudson Creighton and Liam Bowron.

Before the match, Itoje called on the Lions forwards to smash through the Brumbies’ “front door” but the hosts struck first. After Dan Sheehan was penalised early for impeding under a high ball, the Brumbies mauled to the line and Tualima eventually crashed over from a ruck.

The Lions regained control with a dominant scrum, allowing Bundee Aki to charge towards the try line. Gibson-Park switched play left, and Russell’s quick pass sent Chessum over in the corner. They almost added another when Lowe crossed, but Andy Muirhead’s leg under the ball ruled it out.

The Brumbies’ relief was short-lived as Lowe soon scored in the same corner after slick passing. Struggling in contact, the hosts turned to the boot and earned a penalty near the Lions’ 22. Toole capitalised on space from a long pass to cut the gap to 12-10, but a poor goal-line drop-out wasted their momentum.

Russell punished the Brumbies, setting up Smith for a try after the half-time siren and adding his second conversion. Seven minutes into the second half, Ringrose finished off a slick line-out move. He then chased down Smith’s grubber kick to score again and stretch the lead.

But the Brumbies stayed in the fight. From an attacking scrum, Lonergan passed blind to Muirhead, who set up a charging Creighton for their third try. Lonergan’s conversion cut the gap to nine, but the rally soon faded.

Van der Flier’s try from the back of the maul with 12 minutes remaining decided the match, though Bowron lifted the home crowd late on by burrowing over for the final try directly under the posts. REUTERS