The long-awaited British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa kicked off at Emirates Park with a resounding 56-14 victory for the British & Irish Lions against the Sigma Lions, who despite a spirited effort was unable to match the experience and skill of the British & Irish Lions team.
The Sigma Lions came out roaring in the first half, however, true to nature the young lions were soon put in their place by the older lions who scored two quick tries. The Sigma Lions only managed to score their first try in the 34th minute. The British & Irish Lions enjoyed the majority of the possession and territory in the first half which ended with the score at 21-7.
The second half started with a bang with both teams scoring tries and both teams throwing the ball around which loosened up the play. The British & Irish Lions, however, soon took total control of the match in all aspects running away with the scoreline with a flurry of tries. Although the Sigma Lions forwards certainly matched the forwards of the British & Irish Lions, their defence started to crumble under the onslaught of the more experienced British & Irish Lions, who upped the tempo of play and were seemingly unaffected by the altitude.
03:20 British& Irish Lions debutante Louis Rees-Zammit opened the scoring tally for his team with a well-worked try after the ball was played wide from a ruck and chip kicked by Chris Harris, which Rees-Zammit gathered to score. Converted by Owen Farrel (7-0).
07:21 Hamish Watson barged over the Sigma Lions try line for a second British & Irish Lions try after a quick tap penalty was taken 5 metres from the try line and the ball worked through the hands to Hamish Watson for the try. Converted by Owen Farrel (14-0).
20:00 The first 20 minutes of play saw the British& Irish Lions pinning the Lions in their half until minute 16 scoring two well-worked tries with clever tactical play. The Sigma Lions managed to play themselves into the British & Irish Lions quarter for the first time at minute 16 and relentlessly attacked their try line after opting to not take 3 kickable penalties, however, the British & Irish Lions excellent defence held them at bay.
32:24 The British& Irish Lions was awarded a lineout in the Sigma Lions’ quarter. The ball was cleverly thrown in over the last man in the lineout where it was caught by Ali Price who scored the British& Irish Lions’ third try. Converted by Owen Farrel (21-0).
34:54 The Sigma Lions opened their scoring tally with a try by Vincent Tshituka after Burger Odendaal made a breaking run down the sideline into the British & Irish Lions quarter where he was tackled. The ball was kept alive and quickly played wide to Vincent Tshituka who exploited the space in the British& Irish Lions defence. Converted by Jordan Hendrikse (21-7).
40:00 During the last 20 minutes of the first half both teams shared possession and territory. They managed to play in each other’s quarters and used their opportunities to both score.
41:10 Josh Adams scored a brilliantly worked try for the British& Irish Lions after they won a lineout in the Sigma Lions’ half. The ball was then passed to the centre who then passed it inside to Adams who broke the defensive line after Owen Farrel ran a dummy line. Converted by Owen Farrel (28-7).
43:26 The Sigma Lions hit back with a well-worked try after Francke Horn manages to break the defensive line with a strong run and then passed the ball to RabzMaxwane who came flying down the side line to score the Sigma Lions’ second try. Converted by Jordan Hendrikse (28-14).
53:55 The British & Irish Lions managed to play into the Sigma Lions’ quarter with repeated ruck phase plays. The ball was passed to Finn Russel who made a clever cross-kick to the sideline where Josh Adams caught it and walked over the try line for the try. Converted by Owen Farrel (35-14).
60:00 The first 20 minutes of the second half started with a bang with both teams scoring tries and both teams throwing the ball around which loosened up the play.
65:55 Replacement Gareth Davies scores another try for the British & Irish Lions after the ball was passed through the phases from a scrum in the Sigma Lions’ quarter. Converted by Owen Farrel (42-14).
67:43 Josh Adams scored his hat-trick try after the ball was collected in open play from a Sigma Lions ruck and then passed to Josh Adams who raced down the sideline to score. Converted by Owen Farrel (47-14).
71:20 Josh Adams scored his fourth try after the ball was played wide from a ruck in the Sigma Lions’ quarter. Converted by Owen Farrel (56-14).
Scorers:
Sigma Lions: Tries:Vincent Tshituka, Rabz Maxwane. Conversions:Jordan Hendrikse (2).
British and Irish Lions: Tries: Louis Rees-Zammit, Hamish Watson, Ali Price, Josh Adams (4), Gareth Davies. Conversions:Owen Farrell(8).
Teams:
Sigma Lions: 15. EW Viljoen, 14. Jamba Ulengo, 13. Manuel Rass, 12. Burger Odendaal, 11. Rabz Maxwane, 10. Jordan Hendrikse, 9. Dillon Smit, 8. Francke Horn (capt), 7. Vincent Tshituka, 6. Sbusiso Sangweni, 5. Reinhard Nothnagel, 4. Ruben Schoeman, 3. Ruan Dreyer, 2. PJ Botha, 1. Nathan McBeth. Replacements: 16. Jaco Visagie, 17. StiSithole, 18. Carlu Sadie, 19. RuhanStraeuli, 20. Emmanuel Tshituka, 21. Morne van den Berg, 22. Fred Zeilinga, 23. Dan Kriel.
British and Irish Lions: 15. Stuart Hogg (c), 14. Louis Rees-Zammit, 13. Chris Harris, 12. Owen Farrell, 11. Josh Adams, 10. Finn Russell, 9. Ali Price, 8. TaulupeFaletau, 7. Hamish Watson, 6. Courtney Lawes, 5. Jonny Hill, 4. MaroItoje, 3. Kyle Sinckler, 2. Jamie George, 1. Wyn Jones. Replacements: 16. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17. MakoVunipola, 18. Zander Fagerson, 19. Iain Henderson, 20. Sam Simmonds, 21. Gareth Davies, 22. Bundee Aki, 23. Elliot Daly.
Article by Francois du Toit