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Lions face vengeful Wallabies
Updated: Wednesday April 25, 2001 11:37 PM
Although they've assembled a formidable looking squad, the British Lions could be in for a torrid time during their rugby tour of Australia. And if they want to come away from the Southern Hemisphere with a series win, the Lions need to respond in kind by being as physical as possible. The Wallabies are still smarting from their 2-1 defeat to the 1989 British Lions and see the upcoming matches as a type of redemption. The 37-member Lions squad is dominated by 18 English players and is undoubtedly stronger than the 1997 tourists who won in South Africa (also led by Martin Johnson). They will gain confidence from England's upset victory over Australia at Twickenham last November. But that Wallabies team was decimated by injuries, most crucially missing the dynamic half combination of George Gregan and Stephan Larkham. Also, Australia will be much harder to beat on its own grounds, especially if the playing surface is hard and fast, which would suit its expansive, running style. It's a well-known fact that England has never defeated the Wallabies in Australia and has actually suffered some very heavy defeats in the past decade. Australia's problem is that the Lions tour comes early in the Southern Hemisphere's international season, before the Tri-Nations and Bledisloe Cup series. Its players will certainly be match-fit from a tough Super-12 campaign at provincial level, but may lack confidence and cohesion wearing the green-and-gold jersey. The Lions' best chance of beating the world champions will come in the forwards. The retirement of several key players puts a lot of pressure on Australian lock and captain John Eales. Undoubtedly, the Lions will have the edge in the scrums, and possibly the line-outs, if they can target Eales. During the 1989 series, Australia won the first match 30-12 and led the second in Brisbane by 12-9 with only five minutes remaining before two late Lions tries. In the deciding third match, Australia winger David Campese made a famous blunder behind his own try-line that led to the clinching touchdown for the British. (Campese more than redeemed himself two years later by being the hero of Australia's World Cup triumph). But before the "Campo" gaffe, the Lions had changed the momentum of the series through a dominant and aggressive approach up front. In short, they put the more fluid Wallabies off their game by out-muscling them. Australia may be the only nation to have won the World Cup twice, but the unfortunate defeats in 1989 remain a sour point. In the Sydney Morning Herald, former captain Nick Farr-Jones wrote: "Our series loss that year does not exactly haunt me but occasionally, in the wee small hours, the cracks in the ceiling get a little wider. "Perhaps the main regret for me arises from the fact that I still believe that, man for man, the Wallabies were a superior side." Farr-Jones continues: "Our lack of physical response to the visitors' antics cost us dearly but dealt us a valuable lesson." Their New Zealand-born coach Graham Henry will be well aware of how the Lions stole the series 12 years ago. And with unashamedly physical leader in Martin Johnson, you can be sure that the 2001 Lions will be taking no prisoners Down Under.
Jason Dasey is co-host of World Sport, the international sports show that airs live on CNN/Sports Illustrated and CNN International.
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