Analysis: For me, the Lions' third-Test performance merely showed how far away from it they really have been. They didn't seem to be able to build up any momentum or continuity from the first, through the second and on into the third Test. The result was predictable and inevitable really.

The most pleasing aspect of their performance on Saturday was the forward play. By picking pretty much the same pack, they competed well up front, where the two sets of forwards more or less cancelled each other out. The difference to me was in the two backlines, and how potent the All Blacks backs looked with the ball in hand, whereas the Lions didn't have any penetration.

They didn't have anyone to break through the gain line, or put someone away, or put the All Blacks under any pressure. They tried a few loop moves that were slow, ponderous and easily snuffed out by the All Blacks.

At this level, and especially against the All Blacks, you've got to take your chances. Had Donncha O'Callaghan not blown a four-man overlap, the All Blacks might have been 10-0 adrift and down to 14 men. Instead, a minute later they go downfield and score to go 7-6 up and all the confidence starts flowing through them again.

That is often typical of what happens a team lacking in confidence. You always seem to be on your heels, even in attack. Players don't have the confidence in those outside and inside them, and here again the Lions had another new 10-12-13 combination. And maybe this is why the All Blacks always seemed to have more time on the ball too.

I know the Lions have had a lot of injuries but they had opportunities, starting with the game against Argentina, to play players and combinations they were thinking of using in the Tests. You can't keep them under wraps and then expect everything to click against the All Blacks. You only improve by trying out combinations in matches.

There've been a lot of theories put forward as to where the Lions went wrong and where they go from here. Clive Woodward mentioned basing the team in Melbourne and just flying in for the Tests, playing matches on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, and bringing more players. For me it would be preferable to travel with a core of 26 to 30 players, playing regularly, putting pressure on each other and having genuine competition.

The best example is Shane Horgan, who had an outstanding tour but was one of the biggest casualties. His form would have been recognised by most of the British and Irish critics, yet you ask the New Zealand public and they would hardly be aware of him. He is reckoned to be good enough to be in the 22 for all three Tests yet starts only one game. That does not make sense to me.

The other thing that struck me was that in the last week the Lions really needed one member of the coaching or management staff to take control of things. You need one person to take charge, make selections, decide tactics, motivate people and delegate training sessions. Clive clearly wasn't doing that, so was it Andy Robinson, Eddie O'Sullivan or Phil Larder? I don't think that happened. What happens in a situation like that is that coaches tend to look after their own area, with Clive having the final say.

What surprised me - and I'm not saying I was the person to consult - was that in all the decision-making about squad size and how the Lions were going to play, they didn't have more input from people on the inside of New Zealand rugby, or someone with more experience of the game here.

Having been away for a few years and now come back, I have come to appreciate that while it's a great country, it's a really difficult country to come and play in. Even South African Super 12 sides win here very, very rarely.

It might have helped to thrash out all the ideas more. They should have consulted players or management from the 1971, 1983 and 1991 tours, and more

consultation might have questioned the wisdom of bringing Alastair Cambpell, for example. Clive does things his way, he's a little bit left-field, but that doesn't always mean he is right.

I still have the nagging feeling that while the All Blacks were brilliant, a more confident team might have put them under more pressure. Might the Australians or South Africans have pressed home their one-man advantage and gone 10-0 up in the same circumstances? Not in one game have the All Blacks had to grind it out, and that's often been their failing. But, in the end, the Lions were outthought, outcoached, outprepared and outplayed.

(In an interview with Gerry Thornley)