It turned into fight night at Marvel Stadium as Owen Farrell scrapped for a Test place in typically combative fashion and the Lions escaped to victory against fired-up, inspired opponents.
Given the name of the venue, it was a fitting occasion for heroic deeds and those were provided by the magnificent First Nations and Pasifika XV, who proved that the vaunted visitors were eminently beatable.
After the Lions had just about survived the ambush, Charlie Gamble – who terrorised them at the breakdown, as he already had with the Waratahs – said: ‘They are not super-human. We showed that if you put them under pressure, they make mistakes. We rattled them.’
As captain of the British and Irish side, Farrell was doing plenty of rattling too. It took less than five minutes for him to wade into a confrontation with Gamble on the touchline which led to a skirmish involving several players.
He wanted to show that his team were not to be messed with. Having set an aggressive tone, he could be heard bellowing at the men around him ‘let’s not feel sorry ourselves’ just before half-time, when 14-0 to the Lions had become a tense 14-14 thriller.
Farrell Jnr came out to Australia as a late call-up chronically short of game-time, but it didn’t really show in this fabulous, feisty close encounter. He set up the tourists’ first try with a deft kick off his weaker left foot, which Jamie Osborne pounced on to claim the first strike of his Lions debut brace.
British and Irish Lions held on to beat First Nations & Pasifika XV 24-19 in their final tour game
Captain Owen Farrell wanted to show opponents that his team were not to be messed with
It took him less than five minutes for him to wade into a confrontation with Charlie Gamble on the touchline, which led to a skirmish involving several players
Later, 16 minutes from the end, the skipper delivered another routine run-in for Duhan van der Merwe – which ultimately proved decisive – after dummying outside and gliding through a gap.
All in all, Farrell did enough to suggest that, depending on the balance of the back-line cover, he has every chance of earning a bench role in the second Test at the MCG on Saturday, as the Lions strive to clinch a series victory with one match to spare.
After this final tour game turned into a blood-and-thunder highlight of the 2025 campaign, there was the novel spectacle of the Farrells sitting together for a father-and-son press conference. ‘Have we done this before?’ asked Andy. Owen didn’t answer. When pressed on whether they had, the head coach added: ‘I can’t remember. Maybe not.’ Owen added: ‘No, probably not.’
They have always been wary of family-connection talk, but it was all fine and natural. There were even flickers of humour. Asked how his son had played, Andy said: ‘Some good things obviously; a nice little chip off the left peg. Some nice touches on the ball, but there are always work-ons.’
And how did the captain evaluate his own performance? ‘I enjoyed it,’ he said. ‘I loved that it was difficult tonight. We got some joy early on, but it was a tough match. I feel like I’ve been in a tough match now, sat here, so I’m grateful for that.
‘For the rest of it (last two Tests), we’ll see. Whether you’re lucky enough to be involved or preparing the team for what is a massive occasion on Saturday and next week, it’ll be great.’
While the man who wore 12 in this game could wear 22 at the MCG, another contender for a Test place must be Blair Kinghorn, despite the fact that the Scotland full-back was the primary offender in what the head coach called ‘exhibition match’ play.
He was intercepted twice before half-time, but became more assured and confident as the game wore on. If the weather is as bad on Saturday as is expected, Kinghorn’s aerial prowess could be a handy asset.
Farrell did enough to suggest that he has every chance of earning a bench role in the second Test at the MCG on Saturday
The Lions were rocked by an early injury to another tour debutant, Darcy Graham, which led to the Scotland wing – who had already touched down in his 17-minute cameo – being consoled by Finn Russell after limping off in tears.
The tourists were also rocked by the in-your-face intensity, hostility and physicality of the First Nations and Pasifika forwards, epitomised by Gamble, try-scorer Seru Uru, Taniela ‘Tongan Thor’ Tupou and Lukhan Salakaia-Loto.
These men all made thunderous cases to be recalled by the Wallabies who, by their own admission, had been too ‘submissive’ in the first Test in Brisbane, which they lost 27-19.
They also gave a pointer to Australia about the way to unsettle the Lions with snarling intent. Asked if Joe Schmidt and his Wallabies should take note, the captain of the new, bonded ensemble, Kurtley Beale, said: ‘I think so. You’ve got to take it to them.’
The host nation are set to be reinforced by the return of mighty Will Skelton and Rob Valetini, so if they call up any of the super-heroes from Marvel Stadium too, they could pose a far more potent threat up front.
That is a potential problem for the Lions given that they are likely to be without Irish lock enforcer Joe McCarthy, who has a foot injury. England’s Ollie Chessum is destined to fill that void in the second row.
