Lions tours of Australia come around once every 12 years and Australia one the last series by two Tests to one.

This time they will warm up against the Barbarians in Hong Kong on June 1st, before taking on Western Force in Perth on June 5th. They’ll also play Australia other Super 15 teams:

• Queensland Reds in Brisbane on June 8,
• the New South Wales Waratahs in Sydney on June 15,
• ACT Brumbies in Canberra on June 18 and
• Melbourne Rebels in Melbourne on June 25.

There will also be a match against a combined NSW-Queensland Country lineup in Newcastle on June 12.

The experience gained by some of the younger players out there is outstanding, Bowe and Kearney both showed they can be stars in their own right… Fitzgerald and Heaslip stepped up to the mark at a southern hemisphere international level and did so with pride.

Others were outstanding too, Ferris only ruled out of a test place through injury and Earls who will have learnt so much from this trip.

Wait, they were just the youngsters, we’ve got some true world class players already in that squad – O’Driscoll, O’Connell, David Wallace.

Then there’s those who missed out O’Leary and Flannery – and both will be determined to get on top form to show what they could have done in South Africa.

Three autumn internationals are ahead Australia, Fiji and South Africa, and the tough end of the stick in the Six Nations with away trips to Paris and Twickenham.

But with Kidney, Gaffney and Smal all guiding this team where can it really go? They have to be playing full scale rugby – no more the underdogs…

It has been a great Lions tour to South Africa and there is little doubt that supporters on both sides have been treated to some fantastic rugby. Perhaps what has surprised some of the Springbok supporters, is just how ardent the Lions fans are and quite frankly they have every right to be.

These supporters are now gearing themselves up for the final test and so of course are the Lions. Today marked the announcement of the team for the last clash and eight changes were made to the team that lost to the Boks last week.

Paul O’Connell is to take the helm of the team and he is confident that the Lions are in a great position for the final test. Throughout the tour, the Lions players have melded together as a team and there is a great sense of fellowship amongst the players and the rugby supporting public.

Four of the changes announced in the team were due to injury and this means that Brian O’Driscoll, Jamie Roberts, Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones all had to be replaced. Starting for the first time during this Lions tour are Andrew Sheridan, Joe Wolsely and Martyn Williams.

With the high calibre of players present on both sides, supporters can look forward to another cracker test this weekend.

It has been suggested that the major changes have been put in place due to the fact that the Springbok coaching staff wants to give some less experienced players a run. Given that the series is now in the hands of the home team, this makes sense.

While there are lots of new faces, there is only one debutant to the side and that is Zane Kirchner who will play in the number 15 jersey. Other relatively less experienced players include Morne Steyn and Chilliboy Ralepelle who are going to be in the starting line up for the first time.  Local teams such as the Sharks and the Blue Bulls have been an important source of talent for this new Springbok line up.

Pieter de Villiers, Springbok coach, has stated that he tried to extend the unique opportunity of playing against the British and Irish Lions to as many young Springboks as he possibly could. It is also thought that the newer players will benefit the team after what has been a tough couple of weeks for both sides, with two demanding tests.

As the international rugby community gains more exposure to the Springbok coach – Pieter de Villiers, it is clear that he is a different kettle of fish altogether to the previous coach. He is outspoken and does not always find favourable reception with the media – this is true both inside and outside of South Africa.

This week it seemed as if he had taken his comments one step too far and Brian O’Driscoll was particularly incensed with the statements that were made about eye-gouging in the second Lions test. This came after Schalk Burger was cited and banned for a period of eight weeks following an eye-gouging incident with Luke Fitzgerald.

De Villiers is of the opinion that his player did not deserve a yellow card and that eye-gouging is perhaps to be considered part of the game. O’Driscoll expressed his dismay and ultimately his disgust at the comments made by the coach, saying that he should take his role model to young, aspiring sportsmen more seriously. In his opinion, comments such as this are not good for the reputation of the game of rugby and to be fair, he is certainly not the only one.

More sympathetic audience members have stated that perhaps since English is not de Villiers’ first language he has been misunderstood. But there was no mistaking the fact that he was clearly defending an action which certainly does not belong on a rugby field or in any sport for that matter.

O’Driscoll will fly home this week, after his tour was cut short due to injuries sustained during the last test.

The captain has stated that all of the members of the Lions squad are eager to bring an end to what has become a rather extensive losing streak for the legendary team.  Having lost seven of their last test matches, the Lions are keen to set the record straight.

Despite the unfavourable position in which the Lions find themselves, they are planning to build on their performance of last week which saw them narrowly lose to the Boks. The fact that there is such a passionate drive in the team means that they are likely to go out guns blazing and they really want to give their loyal supporters a final test match that will be remembered long after this tour is over.

While the Lions have gone through challenging times, O’Connell believes that they are all professionals and over above this, have a great level of character.  Challenges such as the previous performance by Ronan O’Gara and the loss of some of their key players due to injury are being overcome by the Lions, they are now firmly focused on the road to victory for the last test.

Brian O’Driscoll is undoubtedly one of the British and Irish Lions’ greatest assets at present but he has sadly had one of the worst runs of luck in the squad. During the course of the 2005 Lions’ tour when he captained the team, he didn’t make it past the first minute of the first test. This was due to a spear tackle in which two All Blacks concussed him.

This time around the Leinster centre managed to make it through all of the team’s matches including the first two tests against the Springboks. He has been truly invaluable and is a source of inspiration to many of the younger players on the team.

His tour was cut short this time as a result of a concussion sustained by a tackle during the second Test. He is now to fly home with Adam Jones and wants to ensure that he gets the maximum amount of time possible to ensure his recuperation before the start of the 2009/2010 season in Europe.

While his departure is no doubt a loss for the Lions, it does represent an opportunity for English centre Riki Flutey and could be the start of something great for him.

Last Saturday saw an awesome display of rugby by both sides in the second Test between the Lions and the Springboks in Pretoria. While the quality of play may have been good, many questioned the character of the players on the South African side where eye gouging and shoulder charging seemed to be the order of the day.

Bakkies Botha and Schalk Burger are both internationally recognised as leading forwards and one would have thought that they knew better. Burger in particular was errant in the manner in which he took part in gouging the Lions’ wing Luke Fitzgerald. A citing commission handed him an eight week ban for his trouble which means he is likely to miss most of the Tri-nations series between South Africa, New Zealand and Australia (if not all of it).

The other incident was perhaps more questionable as there were many who felt that Bakkies Botha should not have received a yellow card for his infringement. The forward was given a two week ban for what was termed a dangerous charge on prop Adam Jones.

While the Springbok camp has reacted with absolute indignation to both of these charges, it is clear that only the question about the Botha incident is valid. There is certainly no room for eye gouging and hoodlum behaviour as demonstrated by Schalk Burger in the second test.

At half time the Lions seemed to have a convincing hold on the game as they went into the break with a 16-8 lead. It was clear that both teams were out there to win this encounter and they were willing to put their bodies on the line to do so. If the first half was anything to go by, with a flurry of tries and near misses, it was clear that the crowd should have expected an incredible second half. But even those that were there were in awe of the excitement that was to greet them.

Drama was certainly the order of the day and early into the second half Adam Jones and Gethin Jenkins were both out of the game due to injury. But it was a less dramatic substitution that was to have such a telling impact on the game. Ruan Pienaar had a rather morbid day with the boot and Morne Steyn came on to take his place in the sixteen minute after half time.

Bryan Habana and Fourie were both scorers of excellent tries in the second half that afforded Morne Steyn the opportunity to convert – which he duly did. The Lions’ replied with a steady stream of penalties and then the teams were within one point of each other.

Further drama came with the third try in the second half as the television match official seemed to take forever to finally make the decision to allow South Africa’s third try. The delay seemed to give hope to the Lions but it must be said that they never stopped fighting.

The Lions went on to gain the upper hand and it looked as if it was all but sealed when in the 80^th minute, Morne Steyn launched a beautiful kick that landed squarely between the posts. The Lions now go into the third and final test with no hopes of a series win but with the intention of retaining their pride.

SOUTH AFRICA: Francois Steyn (Sharks); JP Pietersen (Sharks), Adrian Jacobs (Sharks), Jean de Villiers (Stormers), Bryan Habana (Bulls); Ruan Pienaar (Sharks), Fourie du Preez (Bulls); Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks), Bismarck du Plessis (Sharks), John Smit (Sharks) (capt), Bakkies Botha (Bulls), Victor Matfield (Bulls), Schalk Burger (Stormers), Juan Smith (Cheetahs), Pierre Spies (Bulls).

Replacements used: Jaque Fourie (Lions) for de Villiers (55 mins), Danie Rossouw (Bulls) for Smith, Andries Bekker (Stormers) for Botha (both 59), Morne Steyn (Bulls) for Pienaar (61), Heinrich Brussow (Cheetahs) for Rossouw (62). Not used: Chiliboy Ralepelle (Bulls), Deon Carstens (Sharks).

BRITISH & IRISH LIONS: Rob Kearney (Leinster/Ireland); Tommy Bowe (Ospreys/Ireland), Brian O’Driscoll (Leinster/Ireland), Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues/Wales), Luke Fitzgerald (Leinster/Ireland); Stephen Jones (Scarlets/Wales), Mike Phillips (Ospreys/Wales); Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues/Wales), Matthew Rees (Scarlets/Wales), Adam Jones (Ospreys/Wales), Simon Shaw (London Wasps/England), Paul O’Connell (Munster/Ireland) (capt), Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers/England), David Wallace (Munster/Ireland), Jamie Heaslip (Leinster/Ireland).

Replacements used: Andrew Sheridan (Sale Sharks/England) for Jenkins (23-30 mins, blood sub), Sheridan for Adam Jones, Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys/Wales) for Jenkins (both 45 mins), Shane Williams (Ospreys/Wales) for O’Driscoll (64), Ronan O’Gara (Munster/Ireland) for Roberts, Martyn Williams (Cardiff Blues/Wales) for Wallace (both 68). Not used: Harry Ellis (Leicester Tigers/England), Ross Ford (Edinburgh/Scotland).

Referee: Christophe Berdos (France)

Schalk Burger was caught on tape within the first 30 seconds of the game, blatantly engaging in an act of gouging on the wing. Later, in the second half of the Test, Bakkies Botha was cited for what was termed a dangerous shoulder charge against Jones.

Luke Fitzgerald is understandably upset and was convinced that Burger should have been sent off immediately following his infringement. As a result of these incidents, both of the Springbok forwards will face disciplinary hearings in the South African capital of Pretoria. They could each face bans that would mean they are not available for the third and final test of the Lions’ tour.

Adam Jones’ tour has likely come to an end after he suffered a dislocated shoulder during his contact with powerful Botha. This is only one of a number of injury concerns that now plague the Lions after today’s second test.