British and Irish Lions 2017: 'Simmering' Andy Farrell wants Lions to beat All Blacks with brains, not brawn
The Lions coach does not want to go hell for leather at New Zealand if they do not bring implement a smart plan alongside it
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Your support makes all the difference.It will not come as a surprise to hear that ahead of the second must-win Test against the All Blacks, Lions assistant coach Andy Farrell is “simmering”.
The man in charge of their defence will not have been pleased to see the Lions concede three tries last week and follow it up by shipping four tries to the Hurricanes days later. Farrell of old would have reacted by charging into the problem head first in the very next match, such was his fearsome reputation in rugby league, and that’s what many expect the Lions to do this weekend in an effort to save the series.
But not Farrell. After last weekend’s 30-15 defeat that left the Lions clutching onto their series hopes, there was no angry reaction or hairdryer treatment in the away changing room. Both Farrell and head coach Warren Gatland have called on the players to up the intensity, but Farrell wants that to be done with brains rather than brawn.
“There was certainly not anger from the coaches,” Farrell said on Friday. “There was just a realisation of how we need to be better. There’s a reality there that's clear and obvious. They know what's at stake so we'll see how we react.
“We're playing the best team in the world in their own backyard, they're 1-0 up and we need to win. It doesn't get any bigger than that does it? We'll see what we're made of. I'm excited about it. I wouldn't say I'm relaxed because I'm simmering myself but there's an air of confidence in the way we've prepared. We've been honest about what it is going to have to take to win the game. There's no worry, there's a sense of excitement of seeing how good we can play.”
Farrell identifies this feeling to something that he experienced four years ago when, again under the guidance of Gatland on a Lions tour, the squad needed to pull something out of the bag to secure a first series victory in 16 years.
“It has a sense of the third Test four years ago,” he explains. “There is a realisation about what is at stake. We have to make sure we get the balance right and make sure we don’t overplay the emotional card because we have to be smart rugby players as well.”
It will be finding the combination of in-your-face intensity and discipline that will go a long way to deciding whether the series will still be alive by the time the two squads arrive back at Eden Park in Auckland next weekend. On both occasions that the Lions won difficult games on this tour – against the Crusaders and the Maori All Blacks – they physically dominated their opponents and also kept penalties against them down to single figures.
They suffered at the hands of referee Jaco Peyper for their ill-discipline last week, and Farrell has urged the players to start using their brains to produce the right reaction, rather than the wrong one that will inevitably end with the same result.
“There is a lot that has been said already,” he said. “You can tip people over the edge and not let them be the rugby player they are so you have to be cute about it. It all depends on the feel of the mood of the players and what the other coaches, captain and other players in the team are saying – we’ll see where we are.
“The tone has to be right. Sam [Warburton] and Rob Howley spoke very well this morning. You have to be careful you don’t overdo it and cloud what needs to be done.
You don’t just win the game by being raging mad. You have to be smart
“The boys ain’t shying away from that. They hold their hands up when you show them stuff. We allowed them too much time and space to impose their game on us. We need our problem solvers out there. We need to see a reaction from that. But you don’t just win the game by being raging mad. You have to be smart about how you go about these things.”
It might be a surprising approach from the intimidating Farrell, but it is a smart one. The All Blacks have rarely won games by just physicality alone, and if they are to be beaten, it needs to be done with the perfect plan.
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