The Lions have departed Bris Vegas and the muddy Brisbane river, affectionately known as the Brown Snake. They are now 1,000km south in the Emerald City. Sydney is a city that is a mere bystander to the majesty of its watery jewel. Sydney Harbour’s vast beauty never ceases to astound.
The harbour has to be experienced, not simply viewed. With the sharp vertical outline of the flying white sails of the Opera House cutting the skyline beneath the towering single arch of the coat hanger that is the Sydney Harbour Bridge, their combination represents a rare human addition to the aura of mother nature’s grandeur.
Why am I banging on about the beauty of the city that Australian rhyming slang calls steak and kidney? Because the team the Waratahs have selected to take on the might of the Lions at the Sydney Football Stadium means it is not going to be much of a contest.
With the exception of Taniela Tupou – the Tongan Thor – at tighthead, it is a dangerously weak and inexperienced tight five. The tourists supporting the Lions might as well soak up the local beauty, because unlike some of the memorable past contests between these two long-time protagonists, sadly this Waratahs team appears incapable of recreating another chapter in their classic rivalry.
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These two foes first met on June 2nd, 1888, with the Lions winning 18-2. Since that day the relationship has only deteriorated. I am unsure if it’s the British part of Lions name that triggers some of Sydney’s convict DNA to bitterly dislike the representatives of their former imperial overlords, but the animosity has thrown up some wonderful contests across the past 137 seasons.
The rivalry culminated in the most unlikely of legendary brawls in 2001 between Duncan McRae and Ronan O’Gara. Two bantamweight roosters who went toe-to-toe.
In the days before the Lions match against the Waratahs in 1989, Sydney was hit by what is called an “east coast low”. This is a rare cyclonic rain bomb that is generated in the Tasman Sea and dumps an unimaginable amount of rain on to the New South Wales coastline.
In 1989 there was so much rain that it forced the game to be relocated to the wonderful surrounds of North Sydney Oval. This small, beautiful stadium is a restored replica of the colonial era, similar to the grounds the 1888 players would have experienced. The ornate grandstands that once stood at the Sydney Cricket Ground have been painstakingly transferred to this gem of a footy field.
At North Sydney Oval in 1989, in a dramatic and highly skilled exhibition, the Lions won via a drop goal in the dying seconds of what was a magnificent game of rugby.
This week another of the rare giant east coast lows has lashed the New South Wales coast, delivering floods, fallen trees and giant waves. Let’s hope the rugby and the rain follow the same pattern.
The management of the Lions have cast their own dark and stormy clouds across Australia as they have badly misjudged the reaction to their loud and ignorant complaints about the Wallaby players not being included in the Australian provincial games.
Despite the fact the Wallabies are playing Fiji on Sunday, the Lions management strangely appears to have expected Joe Schmidt to not prepare his team for a Test match and send his players back to their provinces for the benefit of the Lions.
The Lions management should consider the statistics over the last 33 years of provincial matches before embarking on insulting their hosts.
Across the eight Lions tours of the professional era, including the two matches on this tour, the Lions have played 44 matches against provincial teams and won 40. What other outcome should we expect when the best players of four nations combine against a single province?
The last provincial game the Lions lost in South Africa was in 1997 against Northern Transvaal. Despite the perceived might of South African rugby, they have not won a single provincial match against the Lions this century.
We did not hear any of the midweek moaning when the Lions dominated their provincial games in South Africa in 2019.
In the previous four Lions tours to Australia in 1989, 2001, 2013 and including the current tour, the Lions have won 18 provincial matches and lost just one. That was to the Brumbies, 14-12, in 2013.
The uncomfortable fact for the Lions management is that despite these provincial victories and the perceived weakness of Australian rugby, every Lions series played Down Under since 1989 has been determined in the deciding third Test.
While all of that is ancient history, the Lions of 2025 should view their history with caution and respect, while keeping in mind that Schmidt was not only Ireland’s coach, he is also the former assistant coach of New Zealand. The man knows how to win.
Schmidt has either coached or coached against almost all of these Lions players. He has also mentored Andy Farrell, Simon Easterby and Johnny Sexton.
That is not nothing when considering the future of this series, because knowledge is power and in every battle the opposition get a say. After the Wallabies take on Fiji on Sunday we will get a glimpse of just how much say the Australians will get.
There is more than a healthy amount of resentment building up inside those who wear the wattle green and gold of the Wallabies against what is being interpreted as an attitude of entitlement and rugby imperialism from the so-called home nations.
All of which is nicely stoking the fires of Australian pride and competition.
While the depleted Waratahs should fall beneath the Lions juggernaut and the Brumbies, as the best performing Australian province, could prove to be a handful next week, like every series of the professional era, the provincial games are an historical rump provided by the host nation to make money and help the Lions select their Test team.
Nothing more and nothing less.
The only thing that matters are the Test matches and those will once again be close and fascinating.
