South Africa 9 - 28 British and Irish Lions: Win restores pride of Lions

Published on Saturday 4 July 2009 22:16

THEY saved the best for last. With the series lost and the shackles off, the Lions put together their best rugby of this tour to grab their first win in eight Tests by the handy margin of three tries to nil.

It was only the Boks' second loss at Ellis Park in the past ten years.

Had the tourists failed yesterday in Johannesburg, it would have been the Lions' first ever whitewash in South Africa but instead they restored some pride in the red shirt and hushed those critics who suggest the entire concept is past its sell-by date.

It was also historic on another count, with hooker Ross Ford replacing the injured Mathew Rees on 36 minutes to give Scotland their sole representative in this Test series.

Having done next to nothing for the entire tour, livewire winger Shane

Williams finally found a couple of inches and the try line, not once but twice in an explosive 12-minute spell during the first half.

UgoMonye then grabbed an interception try after the break to seal the win, with Stephen Jones adding two conversions and three penalties.

Williams' first five-pointer came courtesy of Jamie Heaslip, who was the

standout player in a red shirt on a day when the entire team put their hands up. The Irish No 8 was tackled but not held.Heleapt to his feet and accelerated towards the line before slipping a onehanded pass inside to the supporting winger. Referee Stuart Dickinson gave the score despite a hint of obstruction by Simon Shaw.

Williams' second score came from a turnover.

Again the Lions moved the ball wide only this time Riki Flutey chipped the winger, Odwa Ndungane, and then, in a moment of brilliant improvisation, the centre slapped the ball backwards out of fullback Zane Kirchner's grasp and straight into Williams' hands. The little

Welshman was never going to be caught from 30 yards out.

That moment pretty much summed up the match. The bounce of the ball

had not gone the Lions way to date but yesterday they got it, the rub of the green and any number of 50-50 calls from referee Dickinson.

Even in the final minutes of the match the video referee disallowed a try by Ndungane which could have gone either way. About the only time Lady Luck spat in the tourists' eye was when the ball fell off the tee with Jones lining up a simple conversion. Otherwise they enjoyed the

wind at their backs and they deserved it.

With Phil Vickery facing Tendai Mtawarira for the first time since that

fateful first Test in Durban, the Lions won two straight arm penalties and one free kick in the first five scrums. As the match progressed, "the Beast" seemed to get the better of Vickery again but this was more than nullified by Andrew Sheridan's domination of Boks' skipper John Smit on the opposite side of the scrum. Denied the presence of Bakkies Botha in the boiler house, the one-time hooker struggled to cope with the brute power of Sheridan and it showed.

In truth there were moments of magic from most of the men in red. Rees

tackled Ndungane as he made for the line, Heaslip intercepted the same man to prevent another score and, not long after Wynand Olivier had carved the Lions' midfield wide open not once but twice, Flutey knocked the big Bulls' centre backwards to win a turnover five yards from his own line.

The Lions even managed to play for ten minutes short-handed as Shaw was

sin-binned just before half time after dropping his knees on the prone back of Fourie du Preez.

It was another bit of luck for the Lions as the classy scrumhalf was unable to reappear after the break and Ruan Piennar took his place at the base of the Springboks' scrum. The replacement was responsible for

one of South Africa's best moments early in the second half.

He made a break through the middle of a Springbok's lineout and while

Monye got back to slam the door in his face, it still took a flying tackle from Tommy Bowe to ensure Kirchner dropped the ball out wide. In the very next play, Monye sprinted out of the defensive line to pluck the ball out of thin air and sprint 80 metres to dap down under the posts. No-one was going to stop him scoring this time.

The Lions now had a 22-6 lead to defend for 25 minutes andtheyhadtodo

so with scrumhalf Harry Ellis sharing centre duties with Mike Philips after Riki Flutey left the field. They weren't the only ones out of position because Pierre Spies, No.8 in the first two Tests, replaced Jongi Nokwe on the Springboks' wing.

In the event Morne Steyn kicked his third penalty but two goals from Jones saw the Lions home with something to spare and the tourists' supporters' celebrations last night will only be tempered by thoughts of what might have been.

South Africa: Z Kirchner; O Ndungane, J Fourie,WOlivier, J Nokwe

(P Spies 64 min);MSteyn, F Du Preez (R Pienaar 40 min); T Mtawarira

(G Steenkamp 73 min), C Ralepelle (B du Plessis 40 min), J Smit, J Muller, V Matfield, H Brussow, J Smith, R Kankowski.

British & Irish Lions: R Kearney; U Monye, T Bowe, R Flutey (H Ellis 55

min), S Williams; S Jones,MPhillips; A Sheridan,MRees (R Ford 36 min),

P Vickery (J Hayes 55 min), S Shaw (A-W Jones 67 min), P O'Connell,

J Worsley (T Croft 65 min),MWilliams (D Wallace 77 min), J Heaslip.

Scorers: South Africas: Pen: Steyn (3). Lions: Try: Williams (2), Monye.

Conv: S Jones (2) Pen: S Jones (3)

Referee: S Dickinson (ARU).

HOW THE TOURISTS RATED

ROB KEARNEY 7/10

Another impressive display from the Ireland full-back, in attack and defence.

UGO MONYE 7

Scored his fifth try of the tour with a 70-metre interception effort that eased the Lions home.

TOMMY BOWE 7

Switched from wing into midfield because of injuries, and he didn't disappoint.

RIKI FLUTEY 8

Produced a memorable performance on his Lions Test debut, creating one try and stopping another.

SHANE WILLIAMS 8

Scored two tries to equal the Lions' Test record in one match, showcasing his finishing quality.

STEPHEN JONES 7

Kicked 13 points to end the tour as top scorer. Another assured contribution.

MICHAEL PHILLIPS 8

A thorn in South Africa's side all game. Aggressive, skilled and wonderfully-committed.

ANDREW SHERIDAN 7

Helped ensure the Lions scrum encountered few problems.

MATTHEW REES 7

Went off just before half-time after taking a knock to his head.

PHIL VICKERY 7

Unlike in Durban a fortnight ago, the England World Cup winner held his own against scrum rival Tendai "The Beast" Mtawarira.

SIMON SHAW 7

Yellow-carded just before half-time but he returned to ensure the Lions never lost a grip.

PAUL O'CONNELL 7

The Lions captain led his team to their biggest win against South Africa for 35 years.

JOE WORSLEY 7

Tackled himself into the ground before injury forced him off.

MARTYN WILLIAMS 8

A memorable display of perpetual motion on his Lions Test debut. Irrepressible.

JAMIE HEASLIP 9

Produced probably the game of his life. A colossal contributor across the field.

REPLACEMENTS

ROSS FORD 6 Went on for Rees after 38 minutes and delivered a solid display.

JOHN HAYES 6 The Irishman replaced Vickery after 55 minutes.

HARRY ELLIS 6 Took over from an injured Flutey, which meant Phillips moving into midfield.

TOM CROFT 5 Replaced Worsley midway through the second period.

ALUN-WYN JONES 3 Gained a late run instead of Shaw.

DAVID WALLACE 3 Played the final minutes when Williams' work was done.