RUGBY LION'S TOUR:Gerry Thornley's tour assesment

FULLBACKS

LEE BYRNE

Played 4. Tries 2.

The Welsh fullback hit the ground running by almost single-handedly averting an opening loss to the Royal XV and he continued his form into the Test series only for foot and thumb injuries to curtail his series.

ROB KEARNEY

Played 4 (+1R) Tries 1.

Came out in Byrne’s shadow, but the Welshman’s absence has scarcely been felt. Grew into the tour, cool as a first Test replacement, sensational in second Test when taking a fine try and his fielding under the high ball was world-class.

WINGS AND CENTRES

KEITH EARLS

Played 5. Tries 2.

Recovered manfully from four handling errors against the Royal XV to justify selection as a trump card in back-up team, flourishing especially at fullback where his ability to beat his man one-on-one was as good as anyone’s in the squad.

TOMMY BOWE

Played 6. Tries 4.

Outstanding run-in to Test series, his heads-up rugby, lines of running, soft hands and finishing making him a shoo-in for the Tests when, admittedly, his presence fell away a little, though such was his status he was picked at outside centre in the third Test and was one of only five to play every minute of test series.

LUKE FITZGERALD

Played 5/6. Tries 1.

Drew short straw in belated first start three games in, at inside centre, but looked razor-sharp against the Sharks and his quick feet and clever lines earned him a call-up for the second Test. Defensive blips cost him his place in third Test.

UGO MONYE

Played 5 (+1R). Tries 5.

Strength, finishing (four tries in his first three starts) and solid defence earned him first Test place, whereupon he was targeted in the air and his lack of real quality and finishing let him down before he rebounded in final Test.

LEIGH HALFPENNY

Played 1.

The talented Wales and Blues winger joined the tour late because of thigh trouble, faced the Cheetahs and went home after the injury recurred.

SHANE WILLIAMS

Played 5 (+3R). Tries 2.

The world game’s outstanding finisher and game breaker in ’08 made the cut more on past deeds than form. Williams was given every chance but the harder he tried, the more elusive his old magic became until finally he found his mojo on Saturday.

BRIAN O’DRISCOLL

Played 4. Tries 1.

Ravenous to tick the one remaining box in his glittering career, he revelled in not having the captaincy but still led the team brilliantly against the Golden Lions, formed a telepathic understanding with Roberts and was the team’s talisman. His concussion in second Test was a critical blow. Player of the year and player of the tour.

JAMIE ROBERTS

Played 5. Tries 2.

Sensational tour, exchanging early tries with O’Driscoll in the opening minutes against the Golden Lions, and the two cut the Boks’ midfield to shreds in first Test before his costly departure. Quick, strong, clever, he will add more subtlety to his game.

GORDON D’ARCY

Played 2 (+1R).

Coming from his starting point, even getting here as a replacement was a success in itself, but first chance was the sixth game against the Southern Kings, in week of the first Test. Never did anything bad, just never left a much of an impression either.

RIKI FLUTEY

Played 4 (+2R)

Clearly wasn’t right when troubled by niggling injuries, he still looked sharp against the Emerging Boks and when injury struck the midfield stars, Flutey, without any strapping, stepped in with a magnificent defensive game and possibly the play of the tour. One of only three Kiwis to play for the Lions.

OUTHALVES

STEPHEN JONES

Played 5. Pts 61.

Solid performer, who kicked his goals and was strong in contact though no less than O’Gara suffered when not with frontliners. Benefited from playing outside Phillips, and produced strong all-round games in second and third Tests.

RONAN O’GARA

Played 3 (+1R) Tries 1. Points 44.

No less than Jones, O’Gara looked more comfortable with Phillips and the first-choice midfield, and if anything, quicker hands. But after kicking seven from seven in a 22-point haul against the Royal XV, and impressing against the Sharks, his tour ultimately ended horribly.

JAMES HOOK

Played 2 (+ 4R)

Unlucky to be a selection afterthought, the gifted Ospreys outhalf played too deeply against the Cheetahs and was largely confined to bit parts such as his match-winning penalty against the Western Stormers. A curiously unfulfilled tour from a curiously unfulfilled talent.

SCRUMHALVES

MIKE PHILLIPS

Played 5 (+ 1R). Tries 2.

The cockiest, most self-confident player Gatland has ever coached revelled in the physical, abrasive, sledging challenge presented by the Boks and kept coming back for more. A great bit of stuff, but needs to quicken his service if he is to emulate Fourie du Preez as the best scrumhalf in the world.

MIKE BLAIR

Played 2 (+1R)

Touted as a potential Lions captain last November, the Scottish captain went to South Africa with hopes of making the Lions Test team but sunk without trace in the pecking order behind outstanding scrumhalf Mike Phillips and Harry Ellis. Three times unused off the bench.

HARRY ELLIS

Played 3 (+2R)

Earned back-up slot behind Mike Phillips but never had the speed of service to be a viable alternative, finally winning his first and assuredly only Test cap as a second-half replacement last Saturday.

PROPS

GETHIN JENKINS

Played 4.

Outstanding work ethic and intelligence around the field, he can tell everyone from team-mates to grandchildren that he tackled Bryan Habana from behind for a three-pointer in the first Test. Could have assumed more of a leadership role if he came out of his self-imposed shell.

ANDREW SHERIDAN

Played 5 (+ 1R)

A couple of bullying scrummaging efforts had some of the English media campaigning on his behalf but wasn’t in Jenkins’ league as an all-round prop. Good performance in third Test and will be one of the few longer-term English beneficiaries.

ADAM JONES

Played 3 (+ 3R)

Replaced Phil Vickery to tame the beast and spark the first Test comeback; his departure in second Test was one of the game’s turning points. Once deemed a 30-minute man by Steve Hansen he goes home hailed by Warren Gatland as the most improved player in the squad.

PHIL VICKERY

Played 4 (+ 3R)

Looked good in build-up to first Test but hadn’t been tested at scrum time in those phoney wars and was badly exposed in mortifying first Test. Such a top bloke that no-one could begrudge him redeeming himself last Saturday but King’s Park will haunt him.

EUAN MURRAY

Played 2 (+ 2R)

Made big impact against Western Stormers when winning a couple of crucial late scrum penalties, one of which enabled James Hook to win the match, and may well have been at least on the bench for the Test series until suffering ankle injury against the Southern Kings. One of the tour’s hard luck stories.

JOHN HAYES

Played 1 (+ 1R)

Wasps’ connection and Vickery’s popularity meant odds were always against Hayes been given a third Test starting slot. History will never acknowledge he should have been and proved as much against the Emerging Boks and in a storming third Test cameo

TIM PAYNE

Played 1.

Benefited from England having just played in Argentina, and nothing at all to do with his Wasps connection, to earn a late call-up, although in fairness he performed strongly against the Emerging Boks.

HOOKERS

MATTHEW REES

Played 4 (+ 4R)

You’d have got long odds on Rees finishing as the Test hooker but he grew in confidence as the tour progressed and, save for the odd wayward throw, pretty much rectified a once dodgy throwing arm.

LEE MEARS

Played 3 (+ 2R)

Another who perhaps showed up falsely in the initial; phoney war, although to his credit Mears’ running game – the most dynamic of any frontrow forward in the squad – revelled in the routs of the Golden Lions and Natal Sharks. Alas, his lack of physique was found out in first Test and he was hardly seen again.

ROSS FORD

Played 3 (= 3R)

Poor darts placed him down the pecking order but management were impressed by his high volume of rucks and tackles, and a la Gordon Bulloch four years ago, his appearance last Saturday prevented the Scots from having no representative in a Test series for the first time ever.

SECONDROWS

PAUL O’CONNELL

Played 6.

Maybe over-carried a little early on, and was an easy target for the usual suspects, but while history will show he captained a losing Lions series those in the know, primarily the players, acknowledge he was an inspiring captain and supreme in the air. Yerragh, sod the begrudgers. Immense.

SIMON SHAW

Played 4 (+ 3R)

Used sparingly until second Test, and having waited 12 years, three tours and 16 Lions appearances before a belated Test debut at 35, Shaw was simply awesome in the second Test. A huge game from the big man, his was one of the stories of the tour. Should have picked him in the first Test.

ALUN-WYIN JONES

Played 3 (+ 3R). Tries 1.

Athletic, skilful and mobile, the 23-year-old ought to benefit enormously from this experience. You could see the talent in the early stages of the tour and he had a harder edge to his cameo last Saturday but hardly featured in first Test when a flawed selection.

DONNCHA O’CALLAGHAN

Played 4

Not given his tour bow until the third game, he led the side well against the Southern Kings, and having been on the bench in the first Test seemed set to make an impression but, strangely, didn’t figure again.

NATHAN HINES

Played 4 (+ 1R)

The abrasive, short-fused Leinster-bound Scottish lock didn’t make quite the impression that might have been expected. His offloading game shone against the Golden Lions but thereafter he was shunted around a little.

BACKROWS

TOM CROFT

Played 4 (+ 2R). Tries 3.

Flattered to deceive a little, though there were a pair of well taken tries in first Test and some athletic lineout takes. A Lions Test pack needs more than that and he should never have lasted 80 minutes in the second Test, though you sense he will be one of the prime beneficiaries.

STEPHEN FERRIS

Played 1 (+ 1R). Tries 2.

The hard-tackling Ulsterman had already left an indelible impression with his performances and long range turnover tries against the Golden Lions and Cheetahs before he was invalided out of the tour with a knee injury. A Test banker at six, his loss was a major blow.

JAMIE HEASLIP

Played 5 (+ 1R). Tries 1.

In keeping with every stage of his career, Heaslip gradually flourished in his new environment, culminating in last Saturday’s dynamic, pacey and intelligent display. We can’t expect games like that from him every week but he’s raised the bar again now.

ANDY POWELL

Played 4 (+ 1R)

Statistics showed the Welsh number eight carried the ball more than any other Lions forward in the warm-up games but also that he turned it over a number of times. Glimpses of improved footwork and awareness against Stormers but failed to push Heaslip for a Test place.

DAVID WALLACE

Played 5 (+ 1R)

The number eight experiment went down in flames in tour opener when perhaps too much generally was read into that game. Wallace carried well, and his close contact work was good though he maybe should have made more of an impression at the breakdown.Unlucky to be dropped for finale against undercooked Boks.

MARTYN WILLIAMS

Played 4 (+ 2R). Tries 1.

Before this tour Williams had only come on once, for four minutes, in five previous selections on the bench in Australia and New Zealand. No-one could begrudge this classy operator a first Test start and, wow, how the nuggety number seven availed of it with trademark vision.

JOE WORSLEY

Played 6.

The Wasps tree-feller’s pretty much played to expectations. It was his misfortune to feature in all the struggles, once misplaced at seven against the Southern Kings, before leading the defensive charge against the Boks last Saturday.

Tale of the tour

May 30th, Rustenburg: Royal XV 25 Lions 37

June 3rd, Johannesburg: Golden Lions 10 Lions 74

June 6th, Bloemfontein: Cheetahs 24 Lions 26

June 10th, Durban: Sharks 3 Lions 39

June 13th, Cape Town: Western Province 23 Lions 26

June 16th, Port Elizabeth: Southern Kings 8 Lions 20

June 20th, Durban: South Africa 26 Lions 21

June 23, Cape Town: Emerging Springboks 13 Lions 13

June 27th, Pretoria: South Africa 28 Lions 25

July 4th, Johannesburg: South Africa 9 Lions 28

PLAYED 10, WON 7, LOST 2, DRAWN 1.