The Lions have won in Brisbane, with two late missed kicks from Kurtley Beale Letting Warren Gatland’s side escape with a 23-21 win.

The Lions led by just one point at the break, following a thrilling first half. They came back out strongly and an Alex Cuthbert try on 48 minutes stretched the lead against an injury decimated Australia side.

Leigh Halfpenny added another 3 to make it 20-12 but Australia stayed in touch through penalties, going into the final ten minutes with the Lions ahead 23-21. Was it not for Beale losing his footing on the final kick of the game they could well have taken a win, which would have been hard to argue with. That he had missed a far simpler kick just minutes earlier will make Beale’s pain even greater, and should serve as further warning to the Lions.

Considering the major injuries problems faced by the Wallabies – losing several key team members and having to change their approach to the game – we can expect a powerful, dangerous backlash in next Saturday’s second test.

The Lions now go to Melbourne next Saturday with half the job done.