As it happened – Brumbies v Lions

The Lions have got the stern test they wanted and while they will be disappointed with the loss, better to lose now and have things to work on ahead of the Test on Saturday.

Join us Saturday morning for the game and we can’t wait. It promises to be a cracker. Thanks for joining us and we'll see you bright and early (10.30am) in four days time. Gatland says the lineout and breakdown were issues of concern. Simply calling a spade a spade. Says the first half wasn’t good enough so we can only imagine what was said in the changing room. Rory Best very magnanimous in defeat in the post-match interview. Says the Brumbies beat them up and “wanted it more”. An overall disappointing performance and Rory Best in particular will be not happy with how events unfolded in Canberra. Sean O’Brien went off in the second half when he started coming into the game. Kearney too grew in stature, with the try conceded a blot on his copybook, though Stuart Hogg made the initial mistake. Conor Murray added much needed zip when he was introduced while Simon Zebo appeared for the final 10 minutes and he will hope to feature again next Saturday. 80’ FULL TIME and the Lions have lost by two points on a scoreline of 14-12. They just could not get the ball back in the final couple of minutes. Not ideal with the first Test on Saturday, though we don’t expect to see too many of the players on show tonight to feature in Brisbane. The top team in Super XV has recorded a famous victory and they were in truth deserving of the win. 79’ Big scrum for the Brumbies as they somehow keep hold of possession. 78’ The Lions are now back in their 22 and need to get field position. And rather quickly. 76’ The Brumbies hanging on here.

Engines and wings are on fire but Brumbies need to land this plane! #Lions — Brett Gosper (@brettgosper) June 18, 2013

  74’ PENALTY BRUMBIES – With the Lions pushing hard at the line they give away a penalty. Very disappointing as the Brumbies clear and desperately cling onto their two point lead. Squeaky bum time. 73’ Lions now making all the running and now deep inside Brumbies territory. Faletau has been outstanding, 14 carries tonight and counting. Can they get a penalty or drop-goal or even more? 72’ Murray is looking sharp since he came on. Orchestrating a lot of good work as the Lions surging forward. Rob Kearney too coming a lot more into the game. 70’ PENALTY LIONS – Simon Zebo has entered the fray and after a brilliant long punt from Rob Kearney, the lions re-gather position and Farrell has the chance to make it 14-12 with a kick from 46 metres. That funny stare works as he slots it over with aplomb. 65' PENALTY BRUMBIES - The Aussies show their work at the breakdown to supress the red challenge. Back down to the Lions 22. Still no sign of Simon Zebo with a try needed, but that might be a good sign ahead of the game on Saturday. 62’ PENALTY LIONS – Farrell is going to get his first kick at the posts as the Lions have upped the pace considerably. Hibbard has been prominent and Farrell slots over the resulting kick. Game on. 14-9 60’ The lineout is also improving. Hibbard finds his man and while the move breaks down, it is more encouraging. Faletau showing great hands and Murray quickly getting involved. 59’ Hogg hits the woodwork for a second time and the score remains 14-6. Shame, we could really have done with that. Conor Murray is on for Ben Youngs, Owen Farrell and Geoff Parling also called into the action. 58’ PENALTY LIONS That is more like it. A powerful scrum from the Lions and the substitution looks to have had an immediate impact. Rumbled forward and left the Brumbies with little choice but to give away the penalty. 56’ A whole new front row as Corbisiero, Hibbard and Cole called into the fray, while Sean O’Brien also departs the field of play with what we can only assume is as a result of a knock. It has been a most difficult night for Best and shows Gatland’s intention to win the game. 55' PENALTY LIONS - Great work from Sean O'Brien who we haven't seen much of so far. Hogg slots the penalty over and the Lions must look to get their ball carriers, not that there are as many of them as a result of injuries, to get over the gainline and build through the phases. 53' PENALTY BRUMBIES - Ryan Grant gives away a penalty for grappling with a Brumbies player when there was no need. Mogg is on the touchline and this is not an easy one. No problem to the full-back as he hits it sweetly to stretch the lead to 11 points. 14 - 3 to the Brumbies and all eyes are on the bench to see if Gatland has decided this experiment isn't working. 51' Another turnover as Prior clears downfield. The crowd really getting behind their team now. Mogg finds touch into the Lions 22 with a lovely kick. They have the momentum.

Lack of cutting edge & cohesion in Lions backs is being cruelly underlined by great Brumbies defence #Lions — Will Carling (@willcarling) June 18, 2013

  51' The Lions having more of the ball without looking like they will breach the Brumbies defence. Hogg is doing his best but it’s just not really happening for him, or his teammates right now. The tourists still trail by eight. Faletau on the charge 46' PENALTY BRUMBIES  Mogg slots over the resulting penalty with plenty aplomb. This is not looking good. 11-3 45' Best finds Grey, finally on his third attempt, but good work at the breakdown sees the Brumbies turn over possession. And they duly get a penalty for not rolling away. Should be another three points. 41' Wade showing his pace on the right wing before being tackled with a high tackle. Not here for his defensive qualities perhaps, but he is a danger with ball in hand. And they lose a second lineout in as many minutes. Very, very poor stuff. That's six lost already. 40' No changes to either side as the second half gets underway. And the first throw for Best is crooked. Bit of a disaster area at the moment. 11.34  There is no point in dressing it up any other way, the Brumbies are showing the composure that sees them sit top of the Super XV, while the Lions look disjointed. Though considering there is just five points between the sides and the fact the Lions have the wind in the second period, there is cause for optimism. Twelve years ago the Lions trailed in the same fixture 19-3 at one stage before winning 30-28.

Worst half of rugby for the Lions so far on this tour. Brumbies very organised and dominating every facet of the game #Lions2013 #rugby — ESPN Scrum.com (@espnscrum) June 18, 2013

  11.29 From an Irish perspective, Rory Best is having a difficult day with the darts, losing four lineouts while Rob Kearney was caught for the try, not that he was the only one. 11.24 Hogg converts to make it 8-3 as Jerome Garces blows his whistle for half-time.  The Lions hadn’t been held scoreless in the first half since 1980, so that is one record avoided. In truth the Lions have been bereft of ideas in the backline and defensively have been suspect. The lineout has not functioned well and the concession of penalties will be a worry. On the positive side, they did show resolve in the final minute to build through the phases and did get off the mark. Plenty to do for this scratch side. 11.23 PENALTY LIONS - concerted pressure from the Lons and the ACT defensive line cracked. How they could do with this from Hogg with the half-time whistle about to blow. 11.20 PENALTY BRUMBIES - And another penalty and this is becoming a cause of concern. Prior has given up the kicking duties to full-back Jesse Mogg on the far side of the half way line. He converts and it is 8-0. 11.18  PENALTY BRUMBIES - Prior misses the penalty after the Lions are pinged for holding on. Along with his missed conversion, he has let the visitors off the hook. 11.16  Still 5-0 to the Brumbies who will be more than happy with their controlled first half performance. Warren Gatland won't be getting any selection headaches from this one 11.13  We told you Wade has found the going tough so far, but a picture paints a thousand words. 11.10  End-to-end action here as the Brumbies get a line-out down on the right side. The ball is swept to the left and  despite a wild throw from Prior, the home side keep the ball. Not for long though, as Lions win it back and Williams sticks his foot on the gas and then puts it out of touch. The Welshman looks lively for a 72 year-old. 11.08 Try scorer Kuridrani causing real bother here tonight. Aside from the five-pointer, his aggressive running is severely testing the red defence. 11.07 The Brumbies show that they too are fine exponents of the maul. The Lions managed to clear the danger this time, but Jake White's men have the bit between their teeth. 11.03 Encouraging work from the Lions n the lead-up to that penalty, they won a lineout and rumbled down towards the Brumbies line with an impressive maul, which the hosts duly brought down. Illegally. And there we were thinking that according to former Wallaby coaches that it was only the Lions that resorted to such means. 11.02 PENALTY LIONS – Stuart Hogg presented with an opportunity to get the Lions off the mark, but he hits the post with a chorus of boos ringing in his ears. Not quite with the Leigh Halfpenny record from the tee, 22 from 23 don’t you know. 11.00 Wade has fumbled a ball forward and he has had a difficult start to the game. Argentina seems like a long time ago. 10.57  One of the modern greats watching his first Lions game. We remember only painfully well how he did in 2005. He has witnessed a slow start by the tourists with the Brumbies bossing the play.

About to watch my first @lionsofficial match. Seems they have been playing well by looking at their results so far. — Dan Carter (@DanCarter) June 18, 2013

  10.54 The Lions really struggling to put cohesive phases together and the Brumbies have been highly impressive. Gatland's side look like a team that have played together for the first time...oh wait a minute... 10.52 Another lineout goes awry from a  Lions perspective, this time not a straight throw. Struggling in this department already. 10.49 The Brumbies now 7/4. They have begun well, their lineout looks solid and Gatland would appear to be getting the test of his players' mettle he is looking for 10.48 Ian Prior misses the conversion but the Lions with plenty of work to do. Rob Kearney won't enjoy the DVD afterwards when he sees how easily Kuridrani ghosted in for the try. 10.44 TRY - And it has gone to the Brumbies. Poor defensive play from the Lions, with Stuart Hogg and Christian Wade slipping off tackles that allows Tevita Kuridrani in 10.42 And we're off and Shane Williams is nearly over line within two minutes. Who would have thought it? Encouraging start for the tourists as they start with attacking intent 10.40 It's a cold, cold night in Canberra, though we expect things to heat up on the pitch as the Aussies lay down a marker. Stuart Barnes says that "if Brad Barritt has one strength, it's his defence which should be tested tonight". Hardly a rinnging endorsement for the England international 10.39 Some esteemed journalists expecting big things from the Aussies.

But a win against the Brumbies would be some result #bestteaminOz — Peter O'Reilly (@petersuntimes) June 18, 2013

  10.37 The Brumbies are on the verge of their first appearance in the Super rugby semi-finals since 2004, but whether they will have enough to seriously trouble the Lions remains to be seen. They should be slightly better than the Combined Counties, not that that would represent a huge achievement. 10.33 Here is Shane Williams' jersey for the night, not that everyone agrees with his inclusion of course 10.30 A proud day for Irish rugby too, our third captain on Tour, with Rory Best the latest addition to an illustrious list. 10.24 And Sky Sports informing us he has a point to prove to Warren Gatland and co. He must have come very close to a starting Test spot given his form thus far, and you just never know what another powerful performance here will do for his chances. It's a long shot at this stage 10.20 No changes to either team ahead of kick-off Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the final warm-up game before the Lions take on the Wallabies in the first test in Brisbane just four days away. First up though is the Brumbies and any side coached by Jake White will be well drilled. He has claimed he has put together the strongest possible team, with two of his seven Wallabies back in the mix. For Warren Gatland, the injuries have been well documented, particularly in the backs where Shane Williams return from the rugby wilderness - Japan - while Brad Barritt and Christian Wade will don the famous red jersey for the first time. Here is the starting line up at a freezing Canberra where the hailstone has been falling steadily this morning. 15-Rob Kearney, 14-Christian Wade, 13-Brad Barritt, 12-Billy Twelvetrees, 11-Shane Williams, 10-Stuart Hogg, 9-Ben Youngs, 8-Toby Faletau, 7-Justin Tipuric, 6-Sean O'Brien, 5-Richie Gray, 4-Ian Evans, 3-Matt Stevens, 2-Rory Best (captain), 1-Ryan Grant. Replacements: 16-Richard Hibbard, 17-Alex Corbisiero, 18-Dan Cole, 19-Geoff Parling, 20-Dan Lydiate, 21-Conor Murray, 22-Owen Farrell, 23-Simon Zebo. And here is the team they will be facing: 15-Jesse Mogg, 14-Henry Speight, 13-Tevita Kuridrani, 12-Andrew Smith, 11-Clyde Rathbone, 10-Matt Toomua, 9-Ian Prior, 8-Peter Kimlin (captain), 7-Colby Faingaa, 6-Scott Fardy, 5-Sam Carter, 4-Leon Power, 3-Scott Sio, 2-Siliva Siliva, 1-Ruan Smith. Replacements: 16-Josh Mann-Rea, 17-Jean-Pierre Smith, 18-Chris Cocca, 19-Etienne Oosthuizen, 20-Jordan Smiler, 21-Mark Swanepoel, 22-Robbie Coleman, 23-Zack Holmes. ‘Lions coverage on JOE brought to you in association with Kellogg’s, official cereal & snack provider to the IRFU.’