Fear of more humiliation powerful motivation for Wallabies

By CHRIS LAIDLAW

There has been a curious lapse unto unreality over the chances of the Lions being beaten tonight.

Much of that unreality has been generated by the Australian media, who have become so accustomed to Wallaby success that they can't quite cope with failure.

The Wallabies certainly could have done better in the first test, but they weren't anywhere near as bad as some Australian, let alone British, commentators would have it.

Every international team have days when they simply can't get to grips with things. It is not so much a question of playing badly, but being prevented from seizing the initiative, and that is what happened to the Wallabies last weekend.

That match was uncannily similar to the test between the All Blacks and the French at Marseilles last year.

The All Blacks took 50 minutes to get into that game, but by then it was too late. They played pretty well in doing so, despite being done over comprehensively by their own media.

Exactly the same thing happened to the Wallabies and there is little likelihood of them making the same kind of heavy weather again tonight.

The Lions got the lucky bounces and made the crucial breaks when it mattered. A flash of acceleration from Jason Robinson made the Lions first try. It was the kind of blow that can seriously unsettle any team, and it certainly rocked the Wallabies.

Brian O'Driscoll and Rob Henderson, the two brilliant Irish centres, had the kind of match players dream about.

Between them they wrenched the game away from the Wallabies several times just when it seemed Australia were on the verge of getting on top.

Had Australia scored at that stage the final result might have been very different.

The Wallaby forwards were certainly outplayed for much of the match by a Lions pack who turned in a performance which must rank with the best by a British team abroad.

But the British edge derived from sheer energy rather than any obvious technical superiority or better skills.

That edge is unlikely to be maintained for another two tests, simply because the Wallabies have so much more to prove.

Humiliation can be a marvellous motivator and the Wallabies have been treated to large lashings of it throughout the week.

Daniel Herbert, Nathan Grey and company are not going to let O'Driscoll and Henderson have anything like the room they granted these two last week.

Stephen Larkham, who was less than inspiring in the first test, will certainly do a good deal better, and George Gregan, who as always played soundly enough, will be considerably more dominant this time round.

But in the end the Wallabies' chances will be dictated by the speed of their forwards around the field. The British were almost unbelievably good at the Gabba and it is probably fair to assume that they could scarcely improve on that performance.

For the Wallabies - just as for the Brumbies - possession is everything. If they turn it over they are quickly in trouble. If they don't, they invariably win.