"When your backs are against the wall, I've been lucky enough to be around guys like Dan Cole, Graham Rowntree and Neal Hatley, and they will tell you, 'Just crack on, let your actions do the talking'."
The Highlanders players were telling referee Angus Gardner right from the outset that they were dominating the scrum.
Harlequins and England prop Sinckler reacted in disbelief to that, insisting the scrum was a strong contest for the majority of the contest.
"How can they have dominance? They didn't get a penalty the whole game there until the last few minutes," Sinckler said.
"It's just at the end of the day a perception thing.
"We know we're going to have our backs against the wall every single game when we're here, and we've got to stick together as a 41-man squad, the staff and everyone.
"It just doesn't make any sense to me, some of the calls."
The Lions wrestled the upper hand in the scrum in the 12-3 win over the Crusaders, earning a number of penalties, but the Christchurch hosts maintained throughout they had claimed the edge.
The theme of scrummaging and refereeing interpretations will run throughout the entire Lions tour, with the visitors well aware they must tighten up for the All Blacks Tests.
Replacement tighthead prop Dan Cole was squeezed into turning in for the crucial penalty that allowed Marty Banks to slot the winning penalty on Tuesday.
- NZN
