Stagger then strike: What the Wallabies need to do to keep the series alive

Last Saturday in Brisbane, the Wallabies were comprehensively taken apart in the first Test by the British and Irish Lions, who now have the chance to seal the series in Melbourne.

Joe Schmidt’s video analysis sessions this week will have been forensic. On Saturday night, his team must upset the odds to defeat a Lions team which overwhelmed them physically in Brisbane. This is what went wrong at Suncorp Stadium – and what the Wallabies must do right to win the second Test at the MCG.

Stage fright

The Wallabies looked nervous at the start in Brisbane, spooked by the roaring sea of Lions fans dressed in red and the lengthy pyrotechnic display as they ran onto the field.

At the kick-off, debut breakaway Nick Champion de Crespigny did well to secure the ball, but two phases later, there was no communication in the team as Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii charged into contact isolated.

Second-rower Nick Frost was powerless to stop his centre losing the ball, with the impressive Irish breakaway Tadhg Beirne securing a simple turnover at the ruck. The stage was set.

The Wallabies were deprived of hard ball carriers, but they needed to operate as a pod at the breakdown. This lapse in communication gave the Lions a simple penalty in under a minute and the Wallabies were already on the back foot.

Lineout errors

Wallabies hooker Matt Faessler had a difficult day at the lineout, missing two throws in the first half and overthrowing to Champion de Crespigny at the back of the lineout early in the second period.

The hooker is often unfairly blamed when the lineout goes awry, in the same way a prop is held culpable for a failing scrum when they are reliant on their second-rowers’ push.

Faessler needs his lifters to work in tandem, but in this case, Fraser McReight’s efforts in getting Champion de Crespigny up were irrelevant as the ball sailed high over their heads.

The Wallabies were starved of attacking ball and desperately needed to make the most of the scraps they got. This moment led to a try from Lions hooker Dan Sheehan, essentially killing off the game despite Australia’s second-half fightback.

Faessler has paid the price for his poor performance and has been dropped from the matchday squad for Melbourne, with Waratahs hooker Dave Porecki starting and Billy Pollard coming off the bench.

Beware the ball-playing prop

Imitation is the greatest form of flattery: just ask Joe Schmidt and Andy Farrell. The first clip below is from seven years ago in the Six Nations with Schmidt’s Ireland side against England.

Schmidt often used tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong as a decoy playmaker, confusing defences who, not unreasonably, thought he would charge at them.

Furlong was a talented gaelic footballer in his youth and possesses elite passing skills. In this clip, he pops up a beautiful pass to Bundee Aki to charge through the England defence and set up a try.

In Brisbane, Furlong was back to his old tricks, with Schmidt no doubt experiencing a sense of deja vu in the opposite coaching box.

The prop calls for the ball and his opposite number Allan Alaalatoa braces for contact. Instead, Furlong pulls the ball back to Finn Russell, who exploits space in the surprised Wallabies defence. Sione Tuipulotu scored the first try for the Lions shortly after.

Lack of grunt

The Wallabies were brutally outmuscled by a heavier pack in Brisbane and the lack of powerful ball runners such as the injured Langi Gleeson and Rob Valetini proved costly. Thankfully, both are back for the second Test.

The stats are brutal: the Lions averaged 2.53 metres per post-contact carry against the Wallabies’ 1.87 metres in the game.

The following example of nine phases highlights the helplessness of the Wallabies against the well-organised Lions defence, which has high line speed. The Wallabies were unable to bend back the Lions’ defensive line.

The First Nations and Pasifika XV showed on Tuesday the need for aggressive and strong forwards to take the fight directly to the Lions.

Scrum parity

Although the Wallabies struggled with their lineout, their scrum was a highlight. Traditionally, the Lions have looked at the Australian scrum as an easy way to build domination in the game.

Wallabies tighthead Alaalatoa is playing some of the best rugby of his career and here scrums squarely, forcing giant Irish loosehead Andrew Porter to angle in illegally.

Australia boast the world’s best scrummaging expert, Mike Cron, on their coaching staff, and the New Zealander will have been pleased with the work at the set piece – which will only improve with second-rower Will Skelton’s power in Melbourne.

The box kick can work

The box kick is never easy on the eye and in Brisbane, Jake Gordon’s efforts were ineffective for the majority of the game to boot.

Gordon missed the Test against Fiji with a hamstring injury and was clearly rusty, with most of his kicks lacking the necessary hang time to give his wingers a chance at a fair contest against the brilliant aerial skills of Lions’ fullback Hugo Keenan.

But in the 28th minute, Gordon nailed one, with Max Jorgensen showing not only great skill but strength to rip the ball from Keenan’s grasp and sprint through for a try.

The day of the jackal

Charlie Gamble has become the scourge of the Lions breakdown, causing havoc for both the Waratahs and the First Nations and Pasifika XV.

Gamble was helped in both games by an aggressive pack which smashed opponents to give him a free shot at the ball.

McReight needs similar help, but is still brilliant at scanning for opportunities, even when outmatched, and will look for further opportunities to disrupt his opposite number in Melbourne.

The sniping spark of McDermott

Tate McDermott is a victim of his own effectiveness coming off the bench, and remains there for the Melbourne Test.

He is the perfect spark plug for the Wallabies when the Lions are tiring. In the clip below, the halfback walks up to the ruck laconically, giving the impression he will move into the seventh phase with his forwards.

Lions tighthead Andrew Porter is expecting another carry, but instead McDermott takes on two defenders and wriggles over for a late consolation try.

McDermott’s ability to manipulate space is world-class and will continue to cause the Lions headaches in Melbourne – if utilised correctly.

All nine matches of The British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia are live & on demand on Stan Sport, with Wallabies Tests in 4K. All Test matches live and free on Channel 9 & 9Now.

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