Jeff Probyn: Now Gatland knows some players aren’t good enough

A disaster, a loss of momentum, overplaying in the conditions and a drop in standards were the words and phrases used to describe the Lions first loss on tour in last Tuesday’s Brumbies game.
After all the complaints that suggested the Australians were being disrespectful to the Lions by putting out weakened teams, the Lions did exactly the same and reaped the consequences which resulted in an end to the dream of an ‘invincibles’ tour.
Up until Tuesday the Australian provincial sides were the ‘whipping boys’ in a one way Press barrage of insults about their player selection for the Lions warm-up games, yet even an ‘under-strength’ Brumbies side were able to beat a Lions team stuffed with seasoned internationals.
The Lions management could have used the number of injuries as an excuse but fortunately didn’t which, given the nature of the defeat, is just as well.
Although the Lions backline included a number of players who had recently joined the squad, the majority of them were English and had played together before and would have known Lions and England defensive coach Andy Farrell‘s style which showed in an impressive defensive display (barring one slip by Wade) in a tight game.
In my opinion, the main problem lay in the front row on the tight-head side where Matt Stevens was a disappointment.
We short fat fellows of the front row will always tell anyone who is prepared to listen (and those who are not) that the game is won or lost in the pack and more specifically the front row.
The first half of the Brumbies game was the first time the Lions scrum has been beaten in the set piece on this tour and, coupled with a non-functioning lineout, meant the forwards failed to provide the backs with enough quality ball to win the game.
Gatland and his management team must take a share of the responsibility for the loss because they failed to act quickly enough when it was obvious that the front row was not functioning as it should, even following a half time rocket.
The delay in bringing on the substitute front row cost the Lions dearly as Dan Cole, Richard Hibbard and Alex Corbisiero quickly restored the Lions dominance in that area and put the whole team on the front foot but it was too little too late.
Also Gatland’s choice of taking just two specialist fly-halves, with Stuart Hogg as a makeshift back-up for the mid-week games worked well when the Lions forwards dominated, but when put on the back foot by the Brumbies pack, Hogg’s lack of fly-half experience was exposed.
To point out individual players is not what I would usually do as I believe that in a team game you all have a shared responsibility but in key positions like tight head and fly-half, a team of the stature of the Lions needs and expects players who are fit and the best in their selected position.
The combinations of taking a few players who were carrying injuries along with the other injuries that have happened in the games has disrupted the squad and was always a risk, a risk that unfortunately hasn’t paid-off . But was that loss a disaster or a loss of momentum in terms of the tour?
Losing is never easy and is always a disappointment, particularly for those playing and the fans, but for a squad it can be a good thing.
The Brumbies game has shown that Gatland was right to leave some players – who have since joined the tour – out of his first squad and it demonstrated to him that some of his squad are not of the required standard if the Lions are to win the series.
For some of the players, like captain on the day Rory Best, it is a match they will want to forget and they will be hoping for another opportunity to show what they can really do.
Best must shoulder the blame for the disaster at the lineouts where his throwing was well below an acceptable level for a professional hooker but the scrum is a different matter.
The old saying that a hooker is only as good as his props was shown to be true as Stevens failed to hold his side of the scrum. All successful scrums (and teams) are founded on a solid tight head prop that either locks the scrum stationary or drives, taking the right side of the scrum forward.
This gives a natural advantage to his team as it moves the opposition back row away from your fly-half, allowing him more space and time and follows the flow of the ball as it enters the scrum on the left and exit on the right.
It also means that your flankers are closer in support and are going forward into the tackle area whereas the opposition have to run back which gives you a vital few second’s advantage and creates space for the outside backs.
Failing to hold the right side of the scrum puts the whole front row and scrum under pressure and makes the hooker’s job much harder.  Back in 1990 when England toured Argentina I was the only tight head on tour but Mark Linnet had sat on the bench for England in that year’s Five Nations because he said he could play both sides.
Our two hookers on tour were first choice Brian Moore and John ‘splinters’ Olver who sat on the bench behind Moore for virtually his entire career.
The first tour game was against a club side and the front row chosen was loose head Victor Ubogu, hooker Brian Moore (captain) and Mark Linnet at tight head.
Sadly for Brian, Mark had been less than truthful about his abilities on the tight and the scrum was a mess, resulting in the England side losing that game.
The front row of Jason Leonard, Olver and Probyn played the next game at Tucamon. We won and Moore lost his England place to Olver for the Test at Twickenham later that year.
Best will be hoping that next time he gets a chance to show what he can do, it will be Adam Jones or Dan Cole under his right arm.