Lions Tour

Looking forward to the final test!
That was a very tense match indeed, and a very good try scored by the Aussies.
Why on earth did we go for that penalty right at the death though? I know I will sound like an armchair coach but we should have kept the ball in hand with a tap penalty and used the forwards to trundle a bit closer to the posts. We were putting Australia under so much pressure at that point we could easilly have been given another penalty much closer to the posts, or even an attempt at a drop.
To take a penalty kick that far out, to me at least, was a bit hopeful.
 
daz said:
Looking forward to the final test!
That was a very tense match indeed, and a very good try scored by the Aussies.
Why on earth did we go for that penalty right at the death though? I know I will sound like an armchair coach but we should have kept the ball in hand with a tap penalty and used the forwards to trundle a bit closer to the posts. We were putting Australia under so much pressure at that point we could easilly have been given another penalty much closer to the posts, or even an attempt at a drop.
To take a penalty kick that far out, to me at least, was a bit hopeful.
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We'd have probbaly knocked on and lost the match then been slated for not taking the kick. I can't blame for trying to take the chance when they got it. Our line out was atrocious all game. We need to figure out a way to get our backs going forward otherwise Australia just need to keep their penalty count down and they'll take the series.
 
It was the right decision to kick - unfortunately it wasn't the decisive one. Halfpenny had already kept the Lions in the game and would have been the Prince of Wales had his last kick had enough legs. What a great decider next week will be.
 
mmhhh, still dont think it was the right decision to kick at that point. Another 10 or 15 yards further up maybe. Even for 1/2P it was a very tough kick at the end of a very hard game, with very tired and sore legs. Give him that kick at the start of the game and it may well have gone over with a few yards to spare. Still looking forward to next week though and I think it will be a very difficult game to win. The wallabies have us figured out now and I think we need have to have a lot of changes in players/tactics to get through it on the winning side. As above, the backs need to get a bit more momentum and start finding some gaps. The lions have some very dangerous runners if we can get them on the front foot with a little space.
 
For what it's worth I think Gatland has blown it. We have been unlucky with injuries - O'Connell and Warburton especially. By dropping BoD I far we have no leaders. The experience of George Smith will be vital, I feel, to the Aussies.

I was unsure of BoD prior to the tour, but I really feel it is an error to drop him now. Part of me thinks that Gatland really wanted to say "I'm the first coach to drop Brian O'Driscoll". I hope I am proven wrong. I just think we need to bring something more to the table that power and Leigh Halfpenny's boot.

Glad to see Corbisiero back. I rate him. Just goes about his business very well, very professionally. The bench could be important, there is some impact there.

We shall see. One things for sure. It'll be a humdinger and there will be claret spilt.

Jon
 
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