Player ratings - Lions vs Maori All Blacks

1. Mako Vunipola – 7/10

Very impressive at scrum time. Put in a very solid shift at the breakdown and made some vital tackles in defence. Also carried dynamically causing the Maori defence a lot of problems.

2. Jamie George – 8/10

Put the Lions on the front foot as he bulldozed his way over the gainline time and time again. Very accurate at the lineout which gave his teammates in the backline an excellent attacking platform throughout the game.

3. Tadhg Furlong – 7/10

Very solid at scrum time. Piled the pressure on the opposition front row and won countless penalties for his side. Made some very big tackles in defence and put in a tremendous shift at the breakdown

4. Maro Itoje – 8/10

Another incredible performance from the young second row. An absolute menace at the breakdown. Made 13 carries and countless crunching tackles. His Trojan efforts were rewarded on the 54-minute mark when he crashed over the whitewash from close range.

5. George Kruis – 7/10

Excellent option at the lineout. As usual did the dirty work very well. Made all his tackles and disrupted Maori ball on the floor with some quality work at the breakdown.

6. Peter O’Mahony – 8/10

Excellent performance from today’s captain as he looked to play his way into the test team next Saturday. Got through an unbelievable amount of work at the breakdown, consistently slowing down the Maori play and securing some vital turnovers for the Lions.

7. Sean O’Brien – 7/10

Some strong carries which put his side on the front foot. Was very eager to get off the line in defence and made a couple of very big hits as a result.Carried really well and played a vital role in one of the Lions tries.

8. Taulupe Faletau – 7/10

Very solid day’s work from the Welsh number 8. Time and time again, he carried the ball powerfully, made vital metres and put in some crunching hits in defence. Secured some vital turnovers and looked dangerous when picking from the base. 

9. Conor Murray 8/10

Murray continued his good form and nailed down a starting spot for next week with a strong performance. Good box kicking and work rate round the field with some snipping runs.

10. Jonny Sexton 8/10

With the absence of Farrell Sexton stood up and ran the show. Sexton looked really comfortable on the field and orchestrated the attack superbly. After todays game he could of very well cemented his starting spot against the All Blacks.

11.George North 6/10

North was starved of possession and didn’t get a chance to do what he usually does. With the test game looming North needs to up his performances.

12. Ben Te’o 8/10

Te’o has been ridiculously good on this tour and today was no exception. He tackled everything that game his way and managed to find gaps around the park, seriously impressive game from the stocky 12.

13. Jonathan Davies 6/10

Davies wasn’t his best today with only 1 clean break and a couple of missed tackles. However he is a quality player and could still start the first test game.

14.Anthony Watson 7/10

Watson wasn’t heavily involved but did well with the small opportunities he got. He was able to beat defenders with relative ease however we still want to see more of him.

15. Leigh Halfpenny 8/10

Halfpenny kicked 7/7 from the tee for a total of 20 points today. He didn’t make a huge impact in attack in open play but did have a 100% tackle success rate.

Honourable mentions

Kyle Sinckler 7/10

Sinckler wasn’t on for too long but still managed to make an impact with his powerful clear outs and work around the park.

Dan Biggar 7/10

Biggar did well when he came on and closed out the game comfortably. Biggar has been impressive on this tour and if Farrell remains injured Biggar would be a solid substitute 10.