Third Test: New Zealand v British and Irish Lions |
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Venue: Eden Park, Auckland Date: Saturday, 8 July Kick-off: 08:35 BST |
Coverage: Live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. Listen to post-match reaction on the Lions Social, 11:00 BST, BBC Radio 5 live. |
The
British and Irish Lions will take to the field with "a glint in their
eyes" as they look to "create history" in Saturday's series decider
against the All Blacks in Auckland.
After a thrilling second-Test win last weekend, the Lions will start the third and final meeting as underdogs.
New Zealand have not lost consecutive home matches since 1998 and have not been beaten at Eden Park in 23 years.
But Lions captain Sam Warburton has "unfinished business" in the decider.
The
Welsh flanker, 28, missed the series-clinching third Test win over
Australia in 2013 with a hamstring injury and has been beset by injuries
in recent years.
He missed six weeks at the end of the domestic
season with a knee injury, and suffered a fractured cheekbone in October
2016. He was also on the bench for the first Test after suffering an
ankle knock.
"It feels like all the sacrifice over the past four
years and all the little things I have done have come to this moment,"
Warburton told BBC Sport.
The Lions were easily beaten 30-15 in the first Test, but claimed a 24-21 victory in the second after the hosts played 55 minutes with 14 men following the sending-off of Sonny Bill Williams.
Now they go into the decider knowing they can achieve a first series win in New Zealand since 1971.
Assistant
coach Rob Howley spoke of the "glint in the eyes" of the Lions players
since that Wellington win and, although fly-half Johnny Sexton said he
"struggles to enjoy it sometimes with the nerves", he acknowledged that
he and his team-mates "have to cherish" a once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity.
Head coach Warren Gatland has spoken of the Lions
"achieving something special" and "creating a legacy", but his
counterpart Steve Hansen has attempted to play down the importance.
"Is
the series hugely significant? Of course it is. Will it define this
team? No, because there is a heck of a lot more of this story to be
written," said former police officer Hansen.
"We are expected to
win every Test match, and win well. But we are only playing a rugby
game. Real pressure is when you've got to spend half an hour giving
someone CPR and trying to save their life."
Team news
Going into the second Test, the All Blacks appeared settled and
confident, while it was Gatland and the Lions who were experimenting
with selection.
A week later and Gatland has named an unchanged
23, while Hansen has drafted in two rookies in the back line, Ngani
Laumape and Jordie Barrett, to deal with a minor injury crisis.
The
series started with New Zealand fielding the likes of Sonny Bill
Williams, Ryan Crotty and Ben Smith; it finishes with Hansen gambling on
youth.
However the forward pack are still bursting with
experience, with skipper Kieran Read becoming only the seventh man to
win 100 All Blacks caps.
As for the Lions, Howley has spoken of
their big-game players, with nine of the 23 featuring in the victorious
third Test against Australia four years ago.
The captain that day
was Alun Wyn Jones, who on Saturday plays in his ninth consecutive
Lions Test, a longer run than anyone else in the professional era.
Wing
Anthony Watson is fit to take his place in the side. This is despite
being on the receiving end of a shoulder to the head from Williams that
earned the New Zealand centre a red card and left the Bath man requiring
assessment.
"I remember everything," said Watson. "I had to brace myself for it, I guess, but it's part and parcel of the game.
"He messaged me on Twitter to say there was no intention, and I don't doubt that."
Analysis
BBC Radio 5 live rugby union reporter Chris Jones
While
All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith says his side "do a lot of work"
on the opposition before big games, the Lions management insist the
tourists have been solely focusing on themselves.
"We haven't even spoken about them," said Gatland on Thursday.
Either way, the tactical battle between the two sets of coaches will be fascinating.
Hansen
et al took the Lions by surprise with their forward-orientated style in
Auckland while, despite preconceptions, it's the Lions who have played a
more expansive game across the Tests, outscoring the All Blacks by two
tries to none in Wellington, albeit with a man advantage.
But
would this series be wrapped up already if Williams had stayed on the
field at the Westpac? Or have the Lions developed an all-round gameplan
to shock the All Blacks?
These questions will be answered come Saturday evening.
What they say
Lions head coach Warren Gatland: "They
have the chance to do something special. You have those moments in your
life and you don't want those moments to pass you by."
Lions captain Sam Warburton: "I can't imagine any team has better support than the Lions do."
All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen: "We could win, lose or draw, but we will be a better team for it."
Stats
4 - Number of tries scored by the Lions in the Test series, compared to three by the hosts
19 - Number of years since the All Blacks lost twice in a row at home
38 - Number of matches since the All Blacks lost at Eden Park
56 - Minutes the All Blacks played with 14 men in the second Test in Wellington
80 - Number of years since the All Blacks lost a series having won the opener
20,000 - Minimum number of Lions fans expected at 45,000-capacity Eden Park
What the locals say
"Red Army look to pour boiling oil on Kiwi plebs at Fortress Eden Park"
"All the angst of a World Cup final" - Wynne Gray in the New Zealand Herald.
Social media
"Bring it home boys!!!" - 2009 and 2013 Lion @jamieheaslip.
"The Lions is alive & well." - Lions legend @brianODriscoll after the 2nd Test victory.
Teams
Lions: Liam
Williams (Wales); Anthony Watson (England), Jonathan Davies (Wales),
Owen Farrell (England), Elliot Daly (England); Johnny Sexton (Ireland),
Conor Murray (Ireland); Mako Vunipola (England), Jamie George (England)
Tadhg Furlong (Ireland), Maro Itoje (England), Alun Wyn Jones (Wales)
Sam Warburton (capt, Wales), Sean O'Brien (Ireland), Taulupe Faletau
(Wales)
Replacements: Ken Owens (Wales), Jack McGrath (Ireland),
Kyle Sinckler (England), Courtney Lawes (England), CJ Stander (Ireland),
Rhys Webb (Wales), Ben Te'o (England), Jack Nowell (England)
New Zealand:
Jordie Barrett; Israel Dagg, Anton Lienert-Brown, Ngani Laumape, Julian
Savea; Beauden Barrett, Aaron Smith; Joe Moody, Codie Taylor, Owen
Franks, Brodie Retallick, Sam Whitelock, Jerome Kaino, Sam Cane, Kieran
Read.
Replacements: Nathan Harris, Wyatt Crockett, Charlie
Faumuina, Scott Barrett, Ardie Savea, TJ Perenara, Aaron Cruden, Malakai
Fekitoa.
| Lions tour fixtures | ||
|---|---|---|
| 3 June | Provincial Barbarians | Won 13-7 |
| 7 June | Blues | Lost 22-16 |
| 10 June | Crusaders | Won 12-3 |
| 13 June | Highlanders | Lost 23-22 |
| 17 June | Maori All Blacks | Won 32-10 |
| 20 June | Chiefs | Won 34-6 |
| 24 June | New Zealand | Lost 30-15 |
| 27 June | Hurricanes | Drew 31-31 |
| 1 July | New Zealand | Won 24-21 |
| 8 July | New Zealand | |
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