The British and Irish Lions kicked off their time down under against the weakest Australian opposition that they will face - the Western Force. It went well for the Lions, ending in a 54-7 victory with several standout performers. Let's take a look at some of the best.
1.Pierre Schoeman 6.5
He had a solid game and was generally dependable in the scrum. He got the better of his opposite number without achieving complete dominance.
2.Dan Sheehan 7.5
Sheehan captained the team superbly and put in a performance that showed why is considered to be the clear favourite to start the test matches against Australia.
3.Tadhg Furlong 6
He was not a standout performer but what was most important in this game was that he got through it without injury. We'll likely only see the best of Furlong once he is properly match-fit on this tour.
4.Scott Cummings 5
He was solid in defence throughout the game but had some tricky moments. He failed to gather a couple of kickoffs which proved costly and conceded a couple of silly penalties. If not for his defensive effort, I would have given him a much lower rating.
5.Joe McCarthy 9
He was the best player on the pitch. McCarthy wasted no time imposing himself physically. He had 15 carries and 17 tackles in a game that he dominated. There is plenty of competition in the second row but, with performances like this, he surely has to start.
6.Tadhg Beirne 5.5
Beirne was guilty of some terrible discipline which caused a couple of costly penalties. His presence in the back row helped to solidify the line-out.
7.Josh Van der Flier 7
He was brilliant defensively with 20 tackles and did a lot of grunt work which allowed others to shine. It wasn't a flashy performance but it was one that will be valued highly by Andy Farrell.
8.Henry Pollock 8
Pollock was on the receiving end of some harsh (and unfair) criticism after the Argentina game but was given a chance to silence those doubters which he took brilliantly. He did get a yellow card but that was also caused by a build up of penalties accumulated by the team as a whole. He brought a similar level of speed and dynamism to the position that Ben Earl usually does so this performance will have peaked the interest of Steve Borthwick as well as Andy Farrell.
9.Tomos Williams 8.5
Williams looked good coming off the bench last week and looked even better against the Force. His passing and kicking was spot on and he kept the tempo of the attack up perfectly. His injury will worry Lions fans.
10.Finn Russell 9
Finn Russell stepped into this position with his usual attitude and took control of the game early on with a brilliant cross-field kick to Dan Sheehan who combined well with James Lowe to score an early try. He managed the game well and brought an ability to unlock defences out of nowhere which is a rare skill.
11.James Lowe 8
It was interesting how often he stepped in at first receiver early on and he also had two assists including an impressive set up for Dan Sheehan early on.
12. Sione Tuipulotu 8
Tuipulotu is a crucial presence for this team. In a side filled with attacking flair, Tuipulotu brings the ability to take the ball and make a dominant carry running straight forward.
13.Gary Ringrose 7.5
He scored a try but his most memorable contributions were in defence. He shot out of the line to make a couple of big tackles which set the early tone for the game.
14.Mack Hansen 7.5
This was a game of two halves for Hansen. He struggled a bit in the first half but was one of the stars of the second. He is still working his way back to full fitness so will continue to improve with more game time.
15.Elliot Daly 8
Daly once again showed why he was selected. He combined well with Finn Russell to create the structure of the attack and provided a solid presence in the air and with the boot.
16.Ronan Kelleher 7
DId well in attack when he came on but had limited influence.
17.Andrew Porter 7
Did better in the scrum than Schoeman and was solid apart from that.
18.Will Stuart 7
Showed dominance in the scrum with limited opportunities.
19.Ollie Chessum 7
He came on and was a workhorse who provided some serious impetus in the second half.
20.Jack Conan 6
Was okay when entering the game but couldn't make the same impact as Pollock.
21.Alex Mitchell 7.5
He maintained the dominance won by Williams without doing anything specatacular.
22.Huw Jones 6.5
He needs more matches to get to his true level and he'll show more with more chances.
23.Marcus Smith 7
He came on at fly-half and did well. He carved up the Force defence in the second half. Coming off the bench to play a tired defence is a situation that suits Smith perfectly.
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