The British & Irish Lions travelled to Australia in 2001 with the intention of winning back-to-back Lions Test series for the first time since 1974.
After reigning supreme against world champions South Africa, the Lions headed to Australia full of confidence but were narrowly edged out by the Wallabies 2-1.
In the lead-up to the showdown against Australia, the Lions were tasked with beating a powerful NSW Waratahs team in the fifth match of the Tour.
It was a feisty, full-blooded affair that was full of talking points about the rugby and the lasting impact the match could have for the rest of the Tour.
THE TEAM
With the first Test against Australia at the Gabba looming, head coach Graham Henry named a near full-strength Lions team, with Martin Johnson captaining the side.
The game took place a week before the opening Test and was the final opportunity for the stars of the Tour to fine-tune their talents.
Henry opted for plenty of Englishmen to fill the backs with Jonny Wilkinson lining up at fly-half and Iain Balshaw and Jason Robinson making up two of the back three, as Dafydd James occupied the right wing.
The only other non-English back to start against the New South Wales side was a 22-year-old Brian O’Driscoll who paired with Will Greenwood at centre, and the nippy Matt Dawson completed the back line.
In the front row Darren Morris, Keith Wood and Phil Vickery added the necessary force and they were backed up by the two Englishmen Martin Johnson and Danny Grewcock.
The two flankers Lawrence Dallaglio and Neil Back were part of the squad that beat the Springboks four years earlier, and brought experience to the side, with Scott Quinnell named at No.8.
THE BUILD-UP
The match against Waratahs was the second for the Lions in New South Wales, with Australia A handing Henry’s squad their first defeat of the Tour, 28-25 in Gosford.
Prior to that loss, the Lions were in ruthless scoring form, and in their first match against Western Australia in the WACA stadium, they produced a score not too dissimilar to a cricket innings hitting 116 points against the amateur side.
The level of competition would progress with each passing week, in what was a short 10-game Tour, and a similar outcome occurred, with the Lions scoring a record 73 points in the second half in an 83-6 victory against Queensland Presidents XV.
A tally of 31 tries was scored in the first two games, and their first convincing test, against Queensland Reds, would help Henry see where his squad was at, and a 42-8 success with multiple try scorers provided hope for the remainder of the Tour.
THE MATCH
After heading into the Waratahs game with their first loss Down Under, this was an opportunity for The Lions to bounce back against a New South Wales team that was without their Test players.
The squad was tested physically and mentally, in the final major fixture ahead of the first Test, and many left the field scarred in a brutal battle at the International Stadium.
It was a fiery start from the Lions who took the lead through O’Driscoll’s powerful surge, but Stuart Pinkerton pegged the score back after taking advantage of sloppy possession from the touring side.
The Lions continued to chip away and found themselves with positive territory and quick interchanges, which resulted in the lead being restored by Jason Robinson’s brace.
The Waratahs managed to fight back level again, but the match soon took a turn when Duncan McRae punched Ronan O’Gara unprovoked and got sent off.
At one point in the fixture, The Lions had 13 players playing against Waratah’s 12 after four yellow cards were handed out at once.
The dishing out of the cards distracted from the impressive Lions performance and the 41-24 victory which was secured through tries from Wilkinson and James.
WHAT THEY SAID
Lions head coach Graham Henry said after the match: "If we want to beat Australia we've got to improve considerably from where we are at the moment.
“I thought the game had been cleaned up. This was a shambles. Rugby needs strong discipline from both sets of players. I was proud of the way our players kept theirs.”
Ronan O’Gara added: "If I had expected something I'd hopefully have been able to defend myself a lot better."
THE REST OF THE TOUR
In between the game against Waratahs and their first Test, they had a lighter fixture against New South Wales Country and strolled to a 46-3 victory.
Four days after that win, the Lions headed to the Gabba in Brisbane to face Australia and pick up the first win of the series 29-13.
The tourists played exciting, attacking rugby, with O’Driscoll proving a particular threat from the centre, and it created hope leading into the second and third Tests.
But after another victory against Brumbies, Australia managed to turn the series around and levelled proceedings, handing the Lions a 35-14 defeat in front of a raucous crowd.
It resulted in a showdown in the decider at Stadium Australia in Sydney, with the Wallabies looking to record their first-ever series victory against the Lions.
The final Test was played in front of 84,188 fans, which was a record attendance for a Lions Tour, and the match lived up to the expectations.
Both sides took the lead but as the game was reaching its conclusion two penalties from Matt Burke made the score 29-23 and secured a comeback series victory.
NSW Waratahs 24 British & Irish Lions 41 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney June 23 2001
NSW Waratahs: Tries: Pinkerton, Cullimore, Harris, Edmonds. Conversions: Edmonds 2. Lions: Tries: O'Driscoll, Robinson 2, Wilkinson, James. Conversions: Wilkinson 4, Dawson. Penalties: Wilkinson 2.
NSW Waratahs: McRae; Cullimore, Inman, Harris, Qau Qau, Edmonds, Payne, Blade, Cannon, Moore, West, Bowman, Pinkerton, Waugh, Finau Replacements: Tombs, Green, Mutton, Noriega, Besseling, Carter, Hickey
Lions: Balshaw, James, O'Driscoll, Greenwood, Robinson, Wilkinson, Dawson, Morris, Wood, Vickery, Johnson, Grewcock, Dallaglio, Back, Quinnell Replacements: O’Gara, Perry, Healey, McBryde, Smith, Hill
