Lee Byrne cleans up Royal mess

Royal XV 25 British and Irish Lions 37
WITH only 13 minutes remaining of this vibrant but often alarming occasion on the parched Highveld at the Royal Bafokeng stadium, the Royal XV were leading by 25-13; they needed only a quiet few minutes to seal a famous win and to send shudders down so many British and Irish spines that it would have measured on the Richter Scale.
As it turned out, the Lions flatly denied their valiant hosts that quiet period. They came with a desperate and yet also impressive late charge, which brought them three tries and 24 points in that last 13 minutes, and sent them on to Ellis Park, for the game against the Golden Lions on Wednesday, in better heart. And in the knowledge that they will have to improve mightily.
The tour management bemoaned the large number of basic errors, but there was more to it than that. These Lions were disjointed; it was often difficult to find evidence of a strategy or a wavelength. They never even threatened to win a Royal lineout and, for too long, their only attacking weapon was to send the impressive Jamie Roberts up the middle.
However, class did squeeze through at the end. The Lions can heartily thank Lee Byrne, easily the most accomplished Lion on the field, not only for hitting back and exhuming their chances with a splendid individual try to kick off the final surge, but also for his composure, his footballing excellence and his kicking game.
The Lions also scrummaged well, when they were allowed to by the referee. Some of their driving mauls were also excellent, and how wonderful it is to have this phase back in rugby to clear the field.
Furthermore, Paul O’Connell was impressive as a beacon for his team, and Ronan O’Gara kept his head in the bad times and scored 22 points into the bargain.
Up front, Andrew Sheridan was outstanding at close quarters and in the scrum, probably tearing up the notion that Gethin Jenkins has only to stand up to play in the Tests. However, some of the Lions as individuals were not nearly so impressive. Keith Earls, who seemed overwhelmed by the occasion from an early stage; and the experiment of playing David Wallace at No 8 looked to be a failure.
There was no shame in being taken all the way by the Royal XV because this amalgamation of five of the smaller provinces were not only full-time professionals to a man, but packed full of commitment and good sense and, in Jonathan Makuena, they had the player of the match by a distance.
They were also calm at half-back, where Naas Olivier was superb, but they did struggle up front, and it is difficult to believe that a player has ever been so aptly named in the context of any one game as was Albertus Buckle in the scrum.
There was nothing of a fluke about the Royals’ 18-3 lead approaching half-time, either. They scored when a superb pass behind his back by Hanno Coetzee put captain Wilhelm Koch over for a try, and later in the half when Rayno Barnes, the hooker, exploded out of the heart of a driving maul and scored.
This was all a shock to British and Irish systems and it meant the Lions were desperate for a try before half-time to provide some evidence they were still on the field. And they got one. Roberts and Earls made ground up the middle, the Lions set up a driving maul with Simon Shaw and Sheridan prominent, and when the ball came back, O’Gara fed Tommy Bowe with a delightful flip pass, with Bowe scoring under the posts to make it an acceptable 18-10 at half-time.
When O’Gara kicked a penalty to bring it back to 18-13 there were hints that the Lions would cruise home. But no such luck. First of all, their finishing and their final passes went to pot, costing them two or three tries. And then, to their eternal credit, the Royals came beasting their way back, launching a clever move which sent Bees Roux over the line, with the conversion making it 25-13 and leaving the Lions staring squarely down the barrel.
This was the time when the Royals needed calm. Instead, almost from the kick-off, Byrne launched another chip-and-chase, and even though he could not quite reach the ball as it fell he kicked at it, sprinted on and regathered and made the line. The conversion made it 25-20 and at least the Lions had had to contemplate an impending defeat only for a few seconds.
On they came, by now with regal stride. Alun Wyn Jones forced his way over after powerful forward play and then later, with Byrne running riot, the Lions scored again with Martyn Williams sending O’Gara to the posts.
At the end, the King of Bafokeng presented a gigantic trophy to O’Connell, apparently based on the design of an enormous wooden cake. His Majesty came so close to presenting it to his own subjects.
The first game of any tour is soon forgotten. But this one should live in the memory. It turned back the clock, it brought the Lions out of their extravagant big city lair and even if the attraction of the Super 14 final meant that the crowd was sparse, then it was still memorable for many.
“It was a fantastic honour to play against the Lions, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Koch. Well spoken, and well played. All we know for sure at the moment is that the Lions can finish a game extremely well.
Star man: Jonathan Makuena (Royal XV)
Scorers: Royal XV: Tries: Koch 17, Barnes 27, Roux 66 Con: Olivier, Viljoen Pens: Olivier (2)
Lions: Tries: Bowe 38, Byrne 67, AW Jones 76, O’Gara 80 Cons: O’Gara (4) Pens: O’Gara (3)
Referee: M Jonker (South Africa)
Attendance: 12,352
ROYAL XV: R Jeacocks; E Seconds, D van Rensburg, H Coetzee, B Basson; N Olivier (R Viljoen 58min), S Pretorius (J Coetzee 68min); A Buckle (S Roberts 60min), R Barnes (P van der Westhuizen 68min), B Roux, R Mathee, J Lombard (L Landman 56min), W Koch (capt), J Makuena, D Raubenheimer (R Kember 71min)
LIONS: L Byrne; T Bowe, K Earls (R Flutey 69min), J Roberts, S Williams; R O’Gara, M Blair (M Phillips 66min); A Sheridan, M Rees (L Mears 69min), A Jones (P Vickery 66min), S Shaw (AW Jones 66min), P O'Connell (capt), J Worsley, D Wallace (J Heaslip 66min), M Williams
Source:The times