British and Irish Lions ratings: Who stood out as Lions scrape over line against New Zealand Provincial Barbarians in rusty start of tour

Owen Farrell answered the misfiring British and Irish Lions' distress call to sink the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians 13-7, as Johnny Sexton endured a wretched night in Whangarei.
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Jun 2017, 12:07 BST
Updated 4th Jun 2017, 21:16 BST
British and Irish Lions' Anthony Watson celebrates scoring his sides first try during the tour match at the Toll Stadium (Photo: PA)British and Irish Lions' Anthony Watson celebrates scoring his sides first try during the tour match at the Toll Stadium (Photo: PA)
British and Irish Lions' Anthony Watson celebrates scoring his sides first try during the tour match at the Toll Stadium (Photo: PA)

Ireland fly-half Sexton trudged off after just 48 minutes of the Lions' opening tour clash in New Zealand, removed in part due to a potential leg injury - but also after a miserable performance.

Self-employed maintenance engineer Sam Anderson-Heather's try put the Barbarians 7-3 ahead at the break, with Farrell forced to rescue the tourists in a wholly-unconvincing victory.

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Moment of the matchOwen Farrell sent Ross Moriarty through the line, then got onto the ball again to set up the Lions' winning score, which was well finished by Anthony Watson.

The British and Irish Lions looked disconsolate during a tough test of their credentials (Photo: PA)The British and Irish Lions looked disconsolate during a tough test of their credentials (Photo: PA)
The British and Irish Lions looked disconsolate during a tough test of their credentials (Photo: PA)

Star manTaulupe Faletau: The Wales flanker produced a masterful try-saving tackle in the first half. One of few to impress on a below-par night.Player ratings

Joe Marler: Solid shift, but the England prop never got into his game 6/10Rory Best: Far below the lofty standards that have driven Ireland to the top of the European game 5Kyle Sinckler: A fine Lions debut from a prop with soft hands and a hard edge 7Alun Wyn Jones: Struggled to put his usual aggressive stamp on proceedings 5Iain Henderson: Sloppy in defence and attack and appeared off the pace too 4Ross Moriarty: Aggressive as always and carried well, but made too many mistakes for his usual high standards 5Sam Warburton (capt): Swam against the tide on a sloppy night and struggled to inspire the Lions to expected heights 5Taulepe Faletau: The Wales dynamo was one of the few Lions men to impress, with try-saving tackles and strong carrying 8Greig Laidlaw: No zip around the breakdown and no quick service to his backline left the Lions hamstrung 5Johnny Sexton: The Ireland fly-half trudged off with another potential injury and after a performance that leaves him struggling for a Test spot 4Tommy Seymour: Very quiet night on the wing from the big Scottish flyer 5Ben Te'o: The Worcester star looked composed on the ball but still failed to make his power tell to full effect 6Jonathan Joseph: Failed to get his quick feet into action in space 5Anthony Watson: Took the winning try well to ease an otherwise frustrating night 7Stuart Hogg: Well below the pace here, too many mistakes and looked shaky at the back 5

REPLACEMENTS:Jamie George (for Best, 49) 6Mako Vuniploa (for Marler, 49) 6Tadhg Furlong (for Sinckler, 49) 6George Kruis (for Henderson, 49) 6Justin Tipuric (for Warburton, 66) 5Rhys Webb (for Laidlaw, 57) 6Owen Farrell (for Sexton, 48) 8Unused: Elliot Daly

Who's up next?Auckland Blues v British and Irish Lions, Eden Park, Wednesday, June 7

Related topics:British and Irish LionsJohnny SextonIreland