Martin Johnson pep talk fires up B&I Lions ahead of second Test
NEWS: A pep talk by Martin Johnson has fired up the British and Irish Lions ahead of the second Australia Test, with the England great stressing the importance of fundamentals and staying calm in big games.
Regarded as one of the best locks to have ever played, Johnson captained the Lions to a series victory over South Africa in 1997, but also tasted defeat as skipper four years later in Australia.
Andy Farrell’s tourists can lock up the current series with a win at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday after a polished performance secured the first Test in Brisbane 27-19.
Defeat will send the two teams to Sydney for their final clash with everything to play for.
Johnson spoke about winning and losing at a dinner with the players on Thursday.
“He talked about in the biggest of games, the fundamentals are incredibly important,” Lions scrum coach John Fogarty said on Friday, adding that the room was transfixed.
“He said, ‘it’s the smallest of margins in the biggest of games’.
“When you’re playing in front of 95,000 people in a stadium as iconic as this, and you’re under pressure, or you’re applying pressure, your emotions can go up and down.
“Being able to get back to neutral, or find a way to get clarity back in your mind in the shortest of times, is difficult at times for players.
“So I think that’s really important for us. It’s good advice.
“Tomorrow, we’re not going to get everything our own way,” he added. “We understand what type of game, how big a game, it’s going to be for both teams, and we know it’s going to be a game of small margins.”
The Lions have made seven changes to their matchday 23 with lock Ollie Chessum, prop Andrew Porter, and centre Bundee Aki all coming into the starting side.
They are coming off a bruising 24-19 triumph over a First Nations and Pasifika side on Tuesday – their seventh consecutive win – and bracing for another physical contest with wet weather forecast.
“We don’t see this game in any way as one-sided,” said Fogarty.
“We understand the proud tradition of Australian rugby, we understand they’re not going to go away at all. We’re preparing for an absolute battle.”
