Lions coach Farrell accuses Waratahs of watering the field after close win

Andy Farrell has accused the Waratahs of watering the Allianz Stadium surface ahead of facing the British and Irish Lions on Saturday.

The match ended in a close 10-21 win for the Lions, with the Waratahs shocking the visitors with their relentlessness. After being asked in the post-match conference about his side’s performance at the breakdown where Waratahs’ Charlie Gamble dominated, Farrell pointed to potential slippery tactics from NSW.

“For whatever reason, and I actually don’t care, it’s great for us, the pitch was very wet and I was asking Mike Catt (Waratahs assistant coach) after the game and he was laughing,” Farrell said.

“But I mean, that’s good tactics from them, isn’t it? That the ball’s slippy, the breakdown’s ferocious enough and the line speed is high-octane stuff as well from them...I believe that it could be wet on Wednesday (in Canberra against the Brumbies) anyway, so we’ll take that.”

Venues NSW ground staff have been working around the clock to get the Allianz Stadium surface ready after fierce criticism of the SCG surface, which head curator Adam Lewis labelled “over the top”.

Lewis said on Friday that he was confident that the neighbouring Allianz Stadium surface would hold up to the Lions’ visit on Saturday evening.

Lewis also said that grow lamps had been used out and the whole field had been matted to protect it.

Darby Lancaster of the Waratahs is tackled by Mack Hansen of the British and Irish Lions during the tour match between NSW Waratahs and British & Irish Lions Credit: Getty Images

Farrell said that watering a pitch was a tactic that was used in rugby and was unsurprised when the team entered the stadium to a pitch that was wet underfoot.

“We’ve seen that done plenty of times, I don’t know whether the pitch needed watering,” Farrell said.

After being reminded that Sydney had experienced extremely heavy rain on Tuesday and asked whether the team was not expecting the field to be wet, Farrell responded that the weather for the rest of the week had been nice.

“We know all that (about Tuesday’s rain) but I’ve been here (in Sydney) for two days as well,” Farrell said. “It’s been glorious, it’s been glorious and the pitch was ok and again, we’re not complaining...we know what’s coming and we’ve got to be ready for anything and be able to adapt.”

Waratahs coach Dan McKellar denied that his side had watered a field that is renowned for its difficulties with its drainage system and is likely to be replaced after the NRL finals.

“Andy (Farrell) was probably sunning himself in Brisbane on Tuesday, but it wasn’t pleasant in Sydney, that’s for sure,” McKellar said.

“I had too much to think about to be worried about water on the pitch.”

Farrell and the Lions will travel to Canberra for Wednesday’s game against the Brumbies with rain forecast for Tuesday.

That’s me done for the night, we’ll wrap the live blog up. Early rise for Sydneysiders to get up to Newcastle for the Wallabies-Fiji Test tomorrow.

We’ll be back blogging that, naturally. Or you can watch on a TV if you have one.

The crowd here at Allianz Stadium was 40,568, which is just short of a sell-out but was a record for rugby at the remodelled venue. And it was the fifth biggest crowd overall.

It was a great night. (Just don’t mention the TMO).

Keep an eye out for Jonathan Drennan’s updated match report tonight, and follow-up interviews from the sheds online tomorrow.

Good night.

Here are the key stats for the night.

The turnover count is one, and so too is the lack of attacking possession and territory.

Sione Tuipulotou also gave credit to the Waratahs for making the game “really messy for us”, and said he expects the Wallabies will take note.

“We weren’t as clinical as we’d like to be but credit goes to them. They made the game ugly for us and hard for us to exit, and got after us at ruck time. Credit to them,” Tuipulotou said.

Sione Tuipulotu of the British and Irish Lions is tackled by Hugh Sinclair.Credit: Getty Images

“Our breakdown wasn’t good enough. I thought Charlie Gamble and Rob Leota and the backrow really made it difficult for us to play our game, because they got after us at breakdown time. That’s something we will have to review because that’s something the Wallabies will look to do. They’ve got some good poachers in their team as well.”

The Waratahs extracted 10 turnovers out of the Lions, and the visitors only managed one.

Tuipulotu said he was stoked to be back in Australia as a Lion.

“It is a little bit of a strange feeling (playing in Australia), getting to play with some of the boys I grew up with, like Rob Leota tonight. But I am really proud to represent the Lions here, and my family can come and watch me. My mum and dad are here tonight.

Here’s the verdict from a flat Lions captain Tadhg Beirne: “We had a lot of dropped balls, a lot of turnovers, the ball was a bit slippery out there. It was frustrating from our end, in terms of not being very clinical.

“That’s probably the most frustrating part. The set-piece was a step up but we will be looking back on it as missed opportunities. But credit to the Waratahs. They put up a serious fight today and put us through our pieces.

“We probably lacked the physicality in the game at times and that’s something we have to look at in future weeks.”

Waratahs captain Hugh Sinclair is a happy man, but the big fella has also kept some receipts, it appears.

He sprayed the media for some pre-game forecasts of serious doom and gloom for the Waratahs in this game.

“Super, super proud. The Aussie media had a crack at us, thinking we were going to get beaten by 90 or 50 or 60, and we showed them,” Sinclair said post-game.

Hugh Sinclair of the Waratahs thanks British & Irish Lions players after being tunneled off.Credit: Getty Images

“I wouldn’t mind a bit of positivity from a bit of them to be honest. We showed up. The boys showed up. We just asked for effort the whole game. it was a bit scrappy. The Lions will be disappointed with that. We showed their beatable, they’re 15 blokes on a field. Put some pressure on and things can happen.“

We’ve trawled the internet for the forecasts - or written ones anyway. The one Sinclair appears to be talking about was published on The Roar website: “‘Even more grievous than the 96-19’: Why the Tahs could be set to cop a record-breaking thumping from the Lions.”

It was penned by a South African columnist.

But Sinclair has a point - fair cop. No-one gave the Tahs much hope of getting close against the Lions, and they absolutely turned up.

It was a great send off for one of the nice guys of Australian rugby. Sinclair is retiring from professional rugby and he was tunneled off by the Lions in a great show of respect.

“Cloud nine, it was an awesome way to finish. I wish I was good enough to play more Test matches because that was a hell of a lot of fun. It was awesome,” Sinclair said.

The British and Irish Lions have beaten the Waratahs 21-10 in their third consecutive win, and remain unbeaten in Australia.

What the scoreline cannot reflect is the bravery and fight of a heavily weakened NSW side who refused to give up against the best players from Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.

It was hard to find anyone in Sydney who was willing to give the Waratahs a shot against the Lions before kick-off. One bookmaker was happy to pay $55 on an NSW win.

Someone had forgotten to tell all of this to NSW breakaway Charlie Gamble, who played the game of his life in front of 40,568 at Allianz Stadium. Gamble had come into professional rugby the hard way, scrambling up to a Waratahs contract via subbies rugby with Petersham at Camperdown Oval.

The New Zealander knew how much this occasion meant at Allianz Stadium and rose to it specularly with four turnovers in a ferocious display.

Gamble was competing directly against former World Rugby player of the year Josh van der Flier and came out the clear winner.

Coach Dan McKellar paid credit to Gamble for his relentless work-ethic that kept his team in the game.

Outstanding, he’s got that in him, Charlie, he’s a good player on his day,” McKellar said.

“I’ll keep talking to him about it in the background, about chasing that consistency, because if he produces that week on week on week, then all of a sudden he’s well in the frame, isn’t he?”

McKellar also paid credit to second rower Miles Amatosero for his performance after a difficult Super Rugby campaign.

“Miles Amatosero also stood up, It was a line-in-the-sand moment for him and we’ve been working hard with Miles, he’s probably sick of my voice, no doubt, but it’s all just about coaching him hard to help him get better,” McKellar said.

“I think over the last four weeks of Super Rugby and then again tonight against an international pack, he stood up.”

Taniela Tupou and Andrew Kellaway had been drafted down from Wallabies camp for two reasons: to make the Waratahs more competitive and to have a final audition for Joe Schmidt ahead of the Test series under the bright lights of Allianz Stadium.

Huw Jones scores one of his two tries.Credit: Getty Images

Kellaway played his way back into Wallabies contention with a strong performance under immense pressure, being at the centre of a brilliant NSW defensive effort.

Tupou had a far more difficult night. The tighthead was penalised twice in the first 10 minutes in the scrum. The second time laid the platform a perfect attacking platform and a large hole opened for Scottish centre Huw Jones to skip through for the first try of the game, almost unopposed.

Gamble crashed over for his side’s first try on 29 minutes, but it was ruled out by the TMO due to an obstruction from second-rower Fergus Lee Warner. Referee Paul Williams was at the centre at the game, frustrating both sides with his regular reviews upstairs of decisions throughout the game.

Six minutes later Jones got his second after sidestepping Rob Leota metres from the line and touching the ball down.

The Waratahs almost immediately responded with Tupou quickly popping the ball to Leota who released Darby Lancaster to score. Referee Paul Williams went upstairs to review Lee-Warner for a potential illegal clear out at the ruck, but this time, gave a try.

The Waratahs finished the first half just nine points down and within the first minute Ethan Dobbins, third or even fourth choice for his side at times, crashed over for NSW’s second try.

His front-row colleague scrambled back to desperately tackle van der Flier into touch with the try line at the Irish breakaway’s mercy.

The Waratahs won a free kick in front of their own posts with five-eighth Jack Bowen shaping to kick leading to the Lions charging forward.

Ethan Dobbins of the Waratahs scores a try during the tour match.Credit: Getty Images

Bowen passed to Tupou who kicked the ball in a panic and Williams penalised NSW for not tapping the ball before passing. It gave the Lions a perfect attacking platform.

Impressive English halfback Alex Mitchell was rewarded for his energy throughout the game with a well-taken try as the Waratahs tired.

Ellis Genge crashed over the line late in the game, but Williams again consulted with the TMO and this time he ruled a no-try for obstruction.

The Waratahs’ 21-year-old NSW loosehead prop replacement Jack Barrett had played one game of Super Rugby and was used to learning his trade for Randwick in the Shute Shield, not facing the totemic Irish tighthead Tadhg Furlong in the scrum when he came on for the final 12 minutes. Like his teammates in sky blue, Barrett competed against the odds until the end.

The final score of 10-21 was cheered loudly by the home fans, and it was clear to see why. After a difficult Super Rugby season, the Waratahs had shocked and stunned the Lions. A wintry Canberra awaits the tourists next, for an even stiffer challenge.

And that’s full-time.

The Waratahs have been beaten 21-10 by the Lions but that’s against all expectations. A credible performance from the hosts and a muddled, mistake-filled night from the Lions.

After two 50-pointers against the Force and the Lions, it was the Lions’ smallest winning margin so far on tour.

The Waratahs defence was strong all night, led by Charlie Gamble in tight and Andrew Kellaway out wide. They can be proud of that effort, and build on it for next year’s Super Rugby season.

Their skills weren’t up to scratch in slippery conditions, however.

The match officials had an equally muddled night, with far too many stoppages and errors in general play.

LIONS 21 WARATAHS 10

We have entered the last ten minutes and the Waratahs are still right in this game. They’re trailing by 11 points and are scrapping for everything.

It’s been a gutsy performance from the Waratahs, particularly in the last quarter, when the Lions’ experience factor dials up considerably with their stacked bench.

Barely anyone gave the Waratahs a shot of competing tonight in Sydney, apart from within the walls of their training base in Daceyville. They have competed brilliantly, facing world-class opposition and brutal scrutiny from referee Paul Williams.

After so much hard work, they have too often found themselves on the wrong side of the whistle and are looking exhausted. NSW have given everything tonight and frustrated the Lions, but it’s going to be a long twenty minutes as the fresh Lions roar.