Welcome, one and all, to The 42′s live coverage of the British & Irish Lions’ opening tour match in Australia against the Western Force!
Andy Farrell’s side will kick off against the Perth franchise at 11am at Optus Stadium.
It’s Gavan Casey with you here, and I’ll bring you live updates if you don’t have access to the game on Sky Sports (or if you’re not one of the lucky few in Perth yourself!).
Buzzing for this. We’ve got a fun summer ahead.
Billy Sitckland / INPHO
Billy Sitckland / INPHO / INPHO
What a day for Dan Sheehan! He captain the Lions on his debut.
Sheehan is one of five Leinster players handed Lions bows by head coach Andy Farrell, joining Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van der Flier, while Andrew Porter is set to make his first Lions appearance from the bench.
Farrell has named a starting XV heavy with Irish influence, with Tadhg Furlong — who came off the bench in last week’s defeat to Argentina — making his first start since early May having shaken off his recent calf injury.
Munster’s Tadhg Beirne and Connacht wing Mack Hansen are also among eight Irish starters, while Leinster duo Rónan Kelleher and Jack Conan join Porter among the replacements.
Beirne and Sione Tuipulotu are the only two survivors from the side that faced the Pumas, although on this occasion they have been switched to inside centre and blindside flanker respectively.
Billy Sitckland / INPHO
Billy Sitckland / INPHO / INPHO
WESTERN FORCE: Ben Donaldson; Mac Grealy, Matt Proctor, Hamish Stewart, Dylan Pietsch; Alex Harford, Nic White (captain); Tom Robertson, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Ollie Hoskins; Sam Carter, Darcy Swain; Will Harris, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Vaiolini Ekuasi.
Replacements: Nic Dolly, Marley Pearce, Tiaan Tauakipulu, Lopeti Faifua, Reed Prinsep, Henry Robertson, Max Burey, Bayley Kuenzle.
BRITISH AND IRISH LIONS: Elliot Daly; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Sione Tuipulotu, James Lowe; Finn Russell, Tomos Williams; Pierre Schoeman, Dan Sheehan (captain), Tadhg Furlong; Scott Cummings, Joe McCarthy; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Henry Pollock.
Replacements: Rónan Kelleher, Andrew Porter, Will Stuart, Ollie Chessum, Jack Conan, Alex Mitchell, Huw Jones, Marcus Smith.
Western Force captain Nic White, one of the Australian game’s great characters, greets Sheehan at the coin toss. He surely had a line prepared for the moment.
White is one of six Wallabies in the Force side.
The teams met in 2013, with the Lions winning 69-17, but White (then of the Brumbies) missed that whole tour with a broken shoulder.
So, today is a huge moment for the Force skipper, too.
Minutes away from kick-off in Perth. The Lions are justifiably big favourites against the Force, who endured a poor Super Rugby campaign, but the hosts will surely tear into them early. It’s the biggest game of many of their careers.
Around 45,000 fans expected in the stadium, most of which will be Lions supporters.
It’s a dry, tepid evening. Perfect conditions for both sides to cut loose.
Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
28 Jun
11:02AM
Kick-off
1′ – FORCE 0-0 LIONS: Ben O’Keeffe sounds his whistle and Alex Harford gets us underway!
2′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! IT’S DAN SHEEHAN! WHAT A SCORE!
Beautiful crossfield kick by Finn Russell finds Sheehan, who pads the ball back into James Lowe. Lowe heads for the right-hand corner and flicks the offload around his back, back to Sheehan, who waltzes over unopposed.
Liquid rugby. What a start. And Russell converts from right of centre!
28 Jun
11:07AM
Try for Western Force! Western Force 7-7 Lions
5′ – TRY FOR THE FORCE! WHAT A RESPONSE! AND IT’S NIC WHITE!
Some start by the two captains, ha!
The Lions blew the restart with Dylan Pietsch seizing possession and the Force produced a relentless spell of goal-line pressure from there.
White burrows over on the left-hand side and Ben Donaldson converts from a narrow angle. Superb reply by the home side.
28 Jun
11:09AM
8′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Dylan Pietsch is running amok. He breaks the line through Ringrose and Lowe on a lovely pass — I think by Donaldson — and the Force are deep into the Lions’ 22′.
They win a penalty and kick to the corner. Great stuff by the Force, this. Electric start to the game.
28 Jun
11:10AM
10′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Lions pinged again, this time in the maul, and Force will try to set it up again.
28 Jun
11:12AM
11′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Lions disrupt the lineout but infringe once more with Tuipulotu offside as Force knock on the door. Advantage comes to nothing. O’Keeffe warns Sheehan about his side’s discipline.
Donaldson kicks to touch on the opposite side this time.
28 Jun
11:13AM
12′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Joe McCarthy gets a hand on the Force lineout and the Lions exit through the boot of Tomos Williams!
Western Force’s spell of pressure yields no score, which is a pity for them. They’re motoring nicely here so far.
A superb break by Henry Pollock, who takes it to within inches of the Force line and pops an offload off the floor to Williams, who strolls under the posts.
Weak Force defence but lovely skills and athleticism by Pollock.
Russell chips over the extras and the Lions lead in Perth!
28 Jun
11:20AM
19′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Lions mess up the Force restart once more. One to iron out in the coming weeks for sure.
28 Jun
11:28AM
26′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Scrappy period from both sides. The game has had some fun moments already but hasn’t really settled into a particular pattern.
Both sides playing fairly high-risk attack but handling errors are killing the momentum slightly.
28 Jun
11:38AM
35′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Unreal counter-ruck by Tadhg Beirne and Joe McCarthy steals the ball from under Force’s noses in the Lions’ 22′.
The tourists kick and chase through Tuipulotu but the ball dribbles over the line for a goal-line drop-out.
The Lions, though, win a pen shortly afterwards, around 35-40m from goal in a central position. They take it quickly — and they’re gonna score!
Brilliant by Finn Russell, who catches the Force defence napping and almost takes it the whole way himself. Pops it out of a tackle to Daly for the close-range finish.
Russell converts. That was a frustrating score for the Force to concede — and there were handbags afterwards which were indicative of as much.
Some nice moments and scores from Farrell’s side, equally some moments of frustration, but ultimately a bit of scoreboard separation at the turnaround.
41′ – FORCE 7-21 LIONS: Ben Donaldson gets us back underway and the Lions almost botch another kick-off but Hansen and Daly combine to secure possession and exit.
At half-time, Ian McGeechan was asked on Sky Sports to rate the Lions’ performance so far out of 10 and he said, “You’d struggle to get to a 5.”
Deep in their own territory, Hansen offloads to Lowe, who puts Tomos Williams away.
They exchange passes once more down the right edge, with Williams diving over spectacularly in the corner!
Sensational try by the tourists.
Russell’s conversion drifts wide.
28 Jun
12:10PM
49′ – FORCE 7-26 LIONS: Williams seemed to injure his hamstring in the act of scoring, there. He’s replaced by Mitchell. Hopefully nothing too serious, there, but looked like one that could keep him out for a week or two.
Farrell ringing the changes now in the pack.
28 Jun
12:10PM
49′ – FORCE 7-26 LIONS: Henry Pollock is back on as well after his spell in the bin.
55′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! Joe McCarthy gets in on the act!
Henry Pollock with a brilliant chip and chase. He does well to release the ball and then gather it again. Van der Flier flings one over his shoulder to McCarthy, who charges over near the left-hand corner.
Russell is good from the tee.
28 Jun
12:29PM
67′ – FORCE 7-40 LIONS: Game meandering slightly towards its finish with wholesale changes on both sides.
Mack Hansen has had a superb second half from a defensive standpoint — after a very poor first half on the same front.
Kind of encapsulates the Lions’ performance overall, to be honest.
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Western Force v British & Irish Lions
Welcome, one and all, to The 42′s live coverage of the British & Irish Lions’ opening tour match in Australia against the Western Force!
Andy Farrell’s side will kick off against the Perth franchise at 11am at Optus Stadium.
It’s Gavan Casey with you here, and I’ll bring you live updates if you don’t have access to the game on Sky Sports (or if you’re not one of the lucky few in Perth yourself!).
Buzzing for this. We’ve got a fun summer ahead.
What a day for Dan Sheehan! He captain the Lions on his debut.
Sheehan is one of five Leinster players handed Lions bows by head coach Andy Farrell, joining Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van der Flier, while Andrew Porter is set to make his first Lions appearance from the bench.
Farrell has named a starting XV heavy with Irish influence, with Tadhg Furlong — who came off the bench in last week’s defeat to Argentina — making his first start since early May having shaken off his recent calf injury.
Munster’s Tadhg Beirne and Connacht wing Mack Hansen are also among eight Irish starters, while Leinster duo Rónan Kelleher and Jack Conan join Porter among the replacements.
Beirne and Sione Tuipulotu are the only two survivors from the side that faced the Pumas, although on this occasion they have been switched to inside centre and blindside flanker respectively.
WESTERN FORCE: Ben Donaldson; Mac Grealy, Matt Proctor, Hamish Stewart, Dylan Pietsch; Alex Harford, Nic White (captain); Tom Robertson, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Ollie Hoskins; Sam Carter, Darcy Swain; Will Harris, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Vaiolini Ekuasi.
Replacements: Nic Dolly, Marley Pearce, Tiaan Tauakipulu, Lopeti Faifua, Reed Prinsep, Henry Robertson, Max Burey, Bayley Kuenzle.
BRITISH AND IRISH LIONS: Elliot Daly; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Sione Tuipulotu, James Lowe; Finn Russell, Tomos Williams; Pierre Schoeman, Dan Sheehan (captain), Tadhg Furlong; Scott Cummings, Joe McCarthy; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Henry Pollock.
Replacements: Rónan Kelleher, Andrew Porter, Will Stuart, Ollie Chessum, Jack Conan, Alex Mitchell, Huw Jones, Marcus Smith.
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe [New Zealand].
Western Force captain Nic White, one of the Australian game’s great characters, greets Sheehan at the coin toss. He surely had a line prepared for the moment.
White is one of six Wallabies in the Force side.
The teams met in 2013, with the Lions winning 69-17, but White (then of the Brumbies) missed that whole tour with a broken shoulder.
So, today is a huge moment for the Force skipper, too.
This actually must get so annoying for Henry Pollock! Size of the bloody thing.
Jack Conan seems to be having a great time.
Minutes away from kick-off in Perth. The Lions are justifiably big favourites against the Force, who endured a poor Super Rugby campaign, but the hosts will surely tear into them early. It’s the biggest game of many of their careers.
Around 45,000 fans expected in the stadium, most of which will be Lions supporters.
It’s a dry, tepid evening. Perfect conditions for both sides to cut loose.
1′ – FORCE 0-0 LIONS: Ben O’Keeffe sounds his whistle and Alex Harford gets us underway!
2′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! IT’S DAN SHEEHAN! WHAT A SCORE!
Beautiful crossfield kick by Finn Russell finds Sheehan, who pads the ball back into James Lowe. Lowe heads for the right-hand corner and flicks the offload around his back, back to Sheehan, who waltzes over unopposed.
Liquid rugby. What a start. And Russell converts from right of centre!
5′ – TRY FOR THE FORCE! WHAT A RESPONSE! AND IT’S NIC WHITE!
Some start by the two captains, ha!
The Lions blew the restart with Dylan Pietsch seizing possession and the Force produced a relentless spell of goal-line pressure from there.
White burrows over on the left-hand side and Ben Donaldson converts from a narrow angle. Superb reply by the home side.
8′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Dylan Pietsch is running amok. He breaks the line through Ringrose and Lowe on a lovely pass — I think by Donaldson — and the Force are deep into the Lions’ 22′.
They win a penalty and kick to the corner. Great stuff by the Force, this. Electric start to the game.
10′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Lions pinged again, this time in the maul, and Force will try to set it up again.
11′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Lions disrupt the lineout but infringe once more with Tuipulotu offside as Force knock on the door. Advantage comes to nothing. O’Keeffe warns Sheehan about his side’s discipline.
Donaldson kicks to touch on the opposite side this time.
12′ – FORCE 7-7 LIONS: Joe McCarthy gets a hand on the Force lineout and the Lions exit through the boot of Tomos Williams!
Western Force’s spell of pressure yields no score, which is a pity for them. They’re motoring nicely here so far.
15′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! TOMOS WILLIAMS!
A superb break by Henry Pollock, who takes it to within inches of the Force line and pops an offload off the floor to Williams, who strolls under the posts.
Weak Force defence but lovely skills and athleticism by Pollock.
Russell chips over the extras and the Lions lead in Perth!
19′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Lions mess up the Force restart once more. One to iron out in the coming weeks for sure.
26′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Scrappy period from both sides. The game has had some fun moments already but hasn’t really settled into a particular pattern.
Both sides playing fairly high-risk attack but handling errors are killing the momentum slightly.
35′ – FORCE 7-14 LIONS: Unreal counter-ruck by Tadhg Beirne and Joe McCarthy steals the ball from under Force’s noses in the Lions’ 22′.
The tourists kick and chase through Tuipulotu but the ball dribbles over the line for a goal-line drop-out.
The Lions, though, win a pen shortly afterwards, around 35-40m from goal in a central position. They take it quickly — and they’re gonna score!
37′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! ELLIOT DALY!
Brilliant by Finn Russell, who catches the Force defence napping and almost takes it the whole way himself. Pops it out of a tackle to Daly for the close-range finish.
Russell converts. That was a frustrating score for the Force to concede — and there were handbags afterwards which were indicative of as much.
40′ – FORCE 7-21 LIONS: Pollock gets 10 as he infringes in the Lions’ 22′. The team warning from about half an hour ago still stood, obviously!
Force lineout on the Lions’ 5′.
41′ – FORCE 7-21 LIONS: Excellent work by Beirne, Van der Flier and others as they hold the Force up over the line. A chance missed for the hosts.
And that’ll take us to the break!
It’s been… okay?
Some nice moments and scores from Farrell’s side, equally some moments of frustration, but ultimately a bit of scoreboard separation at the turnaround.
Catch you in 15 minutes!
41′ – FORCE 7-21 LIONS: Ben Donaldson gets us back underway and the Lions almost botch another kick-off but Hansen and Daly combine to secure possession and exit.
At half-time, Ian McGeechan was asked on Sky Sports to rate the Lions’ performance so far out of 10 and he said, “You’d struggle to get to a 5.”
Interesting second half ahead in Perth.
47′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! OH, WHAT A SCORE!
Deep in their own territory, Hansen offloads to Lowe, who puts Tomos Williams away.
They exchange passes once more down the right edge, with Williams diving over spectacularly in the corner!
Sensational try by the tourists.
Russell’s conversion drifts wide.
49′ – FORCE 7-26 LIONS: Williams seemed to injure his hamstring in the act of scoring, there. He’s replaced by Mitchell. Hopefully nothing too serious, there, but looked like one that could keep him out for a week or two.
Farrell ringing the changes now in the pack.
49′ – FORCE 7-26 LIONS: Henry Pollock is back on as well after his spell in the bin.
52′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! RINGROSE! Party time for the Lions!
Lovely hands on a four-on-three down the right and Hansen swings an offload back inside to Ringrose who has the gas to take it home.
He’s had a good game, the Leinster and Ireland centre.
Russell converts. Lions pulling away now.
55′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! Joe McCarthy gets in on the act!
Henry Pollock with a brilliant chip and chase. He does well to release the ball and then gather it again. Van der Flier flings one over his shoulder to McCarthy, who charges over near the left-hand corner.
Russell is good from the tee.
67′ – FORCE 7-40 LIONS: Game meandering slightly towards its finish with wholesale changes on both sides.
Mack Hansen has had a superb second half from a defensive standpoint — after a very poor first half on the same front.
Kind of encapsulates the Lions’ performance overall, to be honest.
72′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! Elliot Daly gets the score — his second — as the Lions condense the Force defence and Marcus Smith finds the space.
Smith converts.
81′ – TRY FOR THE LIONS! Hansen with another assist as he tees up Alex Mitchell for a walk-in score.
Last play of the game, cherry on top. Marcus Smith converts and Ben O’Keeffe sounds the full-time whistle.
A job fairly well done in the end, albeit there were some concerning elements to the first half when the game was still competitive.
Thanks for joining us for live updates. Have a great weekend and we’ll catch you again on Wednesday!
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