British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell has rubbished accusations of complacency following Saturday’s rain-affected series finale against the Wallabies in Sydney.
Having already sealed the three-match series with wins in Brisbane and Sydney, the Lions suffered a 22-12 defeat to Australia at Accor Stadium, with the contest plagued by heavy showers and lightening. Early in the second half, the Wallabies were leading 8-0 when players retreated to the dressing rooms for a 38-minute lightning delay.
During the break, Lions flyhalf Finn Russell, later named player of the series, was captured by broadcast cameras looking at his phone while in the sheds. Phones are banned from dressing rooms by World Rugby due to concerns around sports betting, but the governing body’s terms of participation did not apply during the Lions tour. Later, a Lions staffer covered up the dressing-room camera with a towel.
Meanwhile, the Wallabies kept warm during the delay with fitness bikes and passing drills.
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“We had been warned that there might be lightning, so we had a little bit of a plan,” Australian coach Joe Schmidt later explained.
“We wanted to make sure that players kept moving, so we had different guys rotating on the bikes. We had four balls in the change room that we were just throwing around, just so they could stay connected.”
When played resumed, Wallabies winger Max Jorgensen scored Australia’s second try courtesy of a Lions fumble on the wing, with the hosts taking a 15-0 lead.
Speaking to reporters during the post-match press conference, Farrell bristled at suggestions the Lions were complement or failed to use their time in the changing rooms productively.
“That’s completely utter rubbish. Utter rubbish,” Farrell said.
“You don’t know until you know, and when you do know, then you have to agree that the warm-up time allocated is going to be acceptable to both teams.
“We agreed on 10 minutes for the warm-up, and through our advice from our experts in that field, we only made the call to come out five minutes before and stay there so that we’d be ready to go.”
Farrell said their gruelling Australian tour was “an absolute delight” despite failing to secure a whitewash, leaving the door open to leading the Lions again in four years against the All Blacks.
“I have said to the lads that on reflection it might take one or two beers, but they will be unbelievably proud of what they achieved throughout this tour,” he said.
“We all know how hard it is to be successful on a Lions tour against a good side like Australia.
“Lions tours are tough. The legacy for us is in that changing room. The togetherness of the whole group has been an absolute delight.
“We’ve played some outstanding rugby.”
The Lions do not tour again until 2029 when they travel to New Zealand, with Farrell not ruling out coaching them again.
“Everyone knows what I think about this concept. I suppose that says it all. I absolutely love everything the Lions is about,” he said.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the last eight weeks. There’s always ups and downs but the inner circle is a special place to be.”
Asked if that meant he was keen to coach the Lions again, he replied: “Well, read into that what you want, but four years is a long time between drinks.”
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