Well, it boils down to a decider then between the All Blacks and the Lions and this is probably going to be a brutal, bruising affair. After getting outclassed in the first test, loading 30-15 at Eden Park, the Lions rallied themselves in Wellington, just about, to clinch the second test. Their efforts were helped out by the red card shown to big New Zealand dangerman Sonny Bill Williams for a shoulder charge and initially, while the Lions looked lost in how to take advantage of the situation in front of them, they managed to grind out a 24-21 victory.
Four minutes from the end of the match, Owen Farrell slotted over a penalty to give the Tourists the match win but did the fact that they still struggle to take advantage of the situation, sends a big warning sign ahead of the third test, when they know that the New Zealanders will fight back. In the second test, the Lions capitulated in losing their discipline with the man advantage in their favour and they still had to fight their way back to the victory at the end, with Conor Murray sniping in, try which was converted by Farrell.
With a man advantage, the cushion should have been bigger for the Lions, they should have handled the pressure better and made life a lot easier for themselves. The defeat for New Zealand was their first home loss in seven years and it was their first defeat against the British and Irish Lions in 24. So there is still a massive task ahead of the Lions to pull this off when they meet up for Saturday’s encounter. Put simply, the All Blacks don’t lose very often on home soil and as a punter, you wouldn’t expect them to do so on the weekend when everything is on the line back at Eden Park.
In Auckland at Eden Park, New Zealand are on a 38-game, 23 year winning streak.
New Zealand v Lions 3rd Test betting odds
New Zealand 2/9, Lions 7/2, Draw 28/1
They haven’t lost back to back games since 2011. It was a tight handicap margin in that second test, but a New Zealand -12 handicap offer at Boylesports for the third test is at 10/11. That’s not a bad punt because in the first Test at Eden Park, New Zealand let up towards the end and that reduced the margin of their victory, even though it was still 15 points in the end. So even though the second Test was much tighter, the Lions still had to overcome a deficit to catch up with the 14 men of the All Blacks in the end.
If the usually reliable Beauden Barrett had slotted over three kickable penalties that he missed in the second match, the series could have been over and done with already. So around the twelve-point margin in favour of the All Blacks, back at Eden Park looks about right. There is going to be little chance of them letting up on the day and even though the Lions defended resolutely with great blanket coverage in that second Test, it is worth backing the All Blacks to put out a much more dynamic attacking performance.
They can be trusted to sort it all out. The New Zealanders will be without Williams, who has picked up a four week ban for his shoulder charge at Anthony Watson’s head. It is likely that will bring in Malakai Fekitoa who is no mean understudy and will add his own pace and power to the line. So this is going to be intense, going to be a real scrap and Warren Gatland has told the Lions to expect a backlash from the hosts.
So the Lions have briefly managed to turn the tables, but have they simply prevented the inevitable that is a New Zealand Series victory? If it the Lions it would be their first against the All Blacks since 1971 for New Zealand it would restore all of the hurt pride from Wellington, when even with 14 men they would never have expected to lose.
Head over to Boylesports who have a Lions Tour Close Call Offer running for this third and final test of the series. If the game is won by less than six points (by either side) the bookmaker will double winnings as a free bet on all markets! The maximum stake for the offer is 20 per customer and the maximum bonus per customers is a 500 free bet. This offer applies to all winning single bets over all pre-match markets. One qualifying bet per customer’s (first bet placed on match). Register an account with Boylesports and place a bet of £10 or more at odds of EVENS (2.0) or greater, and receive £30 in FREE BETS as a welcome bonus.
