Thomas: 'We never gave up'
Lions skipper Gareth Thomas admitted New Zealand were worthy winners as they completed a 3-0 whitewash over Clive Woodward’s men with a 38-19 drubbing at Eden Park.
All Blacks skipper Tana Umaga scored two tries while centre Conrad Smith, lock Ali Williams and winger Rico Gear also crossed as the outclassed Lions crashed to their third consecutive heavy defeat
Thomas told Sky Sports: “It’s been a difficult series for the guys. I’ve been proud to play with them because we never gave up at any point in the series.
“We let New Zealand back into the match a bit today. If you concede turnover ball against this side you’ll get punished. They take their chances.
“The commitment on this tour has been great. We haven’t had the amount of preparation Clive wanted or enough time together, but we’re not making any excuses because the All Blacks deserved to win the series.”
Umaga led the New Zealand charge with a superb two-try salvo that made up for the error of his eighth minute sin-binning, and the centre declared it was job done - even if it was not the spectacle he had hoped for.
He told Sky Sports: “We’re very happy to win the series. There were a lot of changes to both sides and there was some weary rugby out there.
“It may not have been the greatest rugby after what we’ve seen over the last two weeks but we came here to win and that’s what we did. We’ll enjoy this victory.
“The penalty count was frustrating and we’ll have to look at that. The Lions were tenacious and never gave up, which was what we expected. They played like true Lions.”
Umaga paid tribute to outstanding debutant fly-half Luke McAlister who completed the impossible by almost emulating the injured Dan Carter’s stunning performance last Saturday.
He added: “Luke McAlister really shone through today. It’s great for New Zealand rugby to have a player like him coming through. Dan Carter was brilliant in the second Test but Luke was probably just as good today.”
Meanwhile, Clive Woodward saluted the All Blacks' superior skills levels and admitted the 2005 Lions had failed.
“The better team won and we hold our hands up to that. I’ve worked with a fantastic group of players on this tour but we just weren’t sharp enough,” he told Sky Sports.
“We let in another couple of soft tries and missed a chance to score early on. The All Blacks’ skills levels are better than ours. I don’t think their players are in a different class, their skills are just better.
“We came here to win the Test series and haven’t managed that, so we’ve failed. But it has still been a great tour, despite what has been written and said.”
The Lions’ disappointing performances in the Tests has seen Woodward and his battalion of coaching staff come under heavy fire but the mastermind of England’s 2003 World Cup victory refused to accept New Zealand also had the edge in the backroom.
He said: “I chose the top six coaches from Britain and Ireland that were available and we did everything we could. They were top class, we just couldn’t get it going. But I’m in charge so I’ll shoulder the responsibility for losing.”
Woodward declared he would make several changes if he were to coach the 2007 Lions tour to South Africa and admitted the past two months have provided the toughest challenge of his professional life.
“The Lions are very special. We’ve tried to uphold Lions traditions but the game has moved on and we were up against the best side in the world. It’s hard when you pick up the injuries we did, including some big names,” he said.
“This has been one of the most challenging things I’ve done and I’d like to see how the next guy does it. I will sit down with whoever takes over and give them my views.
“The biggest thing I’ve had to learn is to start with the Test side from day one. I’d also try and squeeze a few more games in.”
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