The might and power of Europe was on full show in Perth in the Lions 54-7 win over the Western Force, with the silky skills of the backs matched by the physicality up front and vicious line speed that ultimately suffocated the Force and their possession game plan.
Finn Russell famously called himself the Messi of rugby on Netflix’s Six Nations documentary, but on Saturday night he looked like he was in Pittsburgh rather than Perth, playing like a check-down NFL quaterback in the opening 20 minutes.
The amount of forward passes Russell threw you would think he was throwing screens into the flat for running backs. The mercurial playmaker was playing on top of the Force line, he couldn’t help but serve passes in front of his targets.
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In the lead up to the Lions first try to captain Dan Sheehan, Russell claimed no less than three first downs with forward projectiles.
In the 20th minute a no-looker from Russell to Ringrose floated a good metre forward, and 10 seconds later he threaded the needle behind a Force defender with Mahomes’ shovel pass for another forward one.
Russell’s propensity to play so flat is a risk for the Lions, those passes will be called forward when the spotlight of the Test series puts a microscope on the detail.
Former Australian wing Mack Hansen can count himself lucky on return to the lucky country. The Ireland international could have had the tour’s first 20-minute red card with a suspect tackle on Ben Donaldson just minutes in.
The British & Irish Lions dominance in the game wasn’t without concern. The Force found chinks in the armour that will be of note to the Wallabies.
After Argentina exposed the Lion’s weakness in the air in Dublin, the Force failed to generate a contestable kicking game to their detriment.
The Lions’ supremacy in the kicking game was a big reason why they were able to dispose the Force. Daly, Lowe and Russell ensured the Lions won the territorial arm wrestle every time.
But from the kick off restart the Lions had issues, with the high ball sailing over the receiving unit multiple times. The pressure of wing Dylan Pietsch, a shining light for the Force, helped disrupt. His aerial grab from one of the kick offs led to the Force’s only try. When the Force went with a short 10 metre restart, a flying Pietsch claimed his second recovery in the air.
Taking what Argentina did so well and combining it with the Force’s restart strategy could cause a dog’s breakfast for the Lions.
The Test-laden Lions were deadly when it came to converting quick strike opportunities. That is where they were operating in a different stratosphere to the 9th-placed Super Rugby team.
The try to halfback Tomos Williams down the right-hand flank was a masterful counter offensive, with left wing James Lowe playing a crucial role in ripping apart the Force. The wide head-on replay showed no less than four Lions’ backs sweeping across from the opposite side to inject in the strike, overwhelming the Force defence.
That try effectively put the game out of reach at 28-7 and the floodgates threatened to open when slick handling by the backs put Garry Ringrose in.
The Force muscled up at scrum time, and their lineout performed admirably, but ultimately they lacked the stamina to handle a world class attacking unit on a fast dry track.
The Force tried to meet the Lions on the ground and were rolled, despite Finn Russell getting away with his short yardage completions.
