Sunday 4 June 2017 14:41, UK
The opening game of the British and Irish Lions tour should have been a chance to for the tourists to lay down a marker. However, their performance against the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians has the New Zealand press labelling them "pathetic" and "incompetent".
Anthony Watson's second-half try gave the Lions a narrow 13-7 win over the semi-professional Provincial Barbarians, but the performance was far from convincing with Warren Gatland's side looking well off the pace.
With New Zealand's Super Rugby teams next for the Lions - they play the Blues on Wednesday and the Crusaders on June 10, live on Sky Sports - the visitors have not got much time to turn it around and the New Zealand media have been brutal in their criticism.
Gatland defended his team's performance saying that jet lag had played its part but former All Black prop Richard Loe was having none of it.
"That was pathetic," said Loe in his New Zealand Herald column. "There will be apologists, but that was horrible and they'd better get their act together."
Gregor Paul, also writing in the New Zealand Herald, claimed that the whole of New Zealand should be worried for the Lions after that performance: "The Lions won, but they reached unimaginable levels of mediocrity in doing so. And given what lies ahead for the Lions, they'd have to be worried. New Zealand should be worried for them.
"Maybe even say a little prayer because they need some kind of miracle to survive the next five weeks if what they offered in Whangarei is what they are all about."
Rugby writer Phil Gifford also pulled no punches, claiming that the Lions looked incompetent and had nothing in attack.
"In blunt terms the Lions looked incompetent," Gifford wrote in the Sunday Star Times.
"How could a team stacked with nothing but internationals for so long look so leaden footed, so lacking in confidence, they took kicks at goal instead of looking for tries from a lineout, so lacking in co-ordination and attacking ideas?"
Liam Napier, writing for Stuff, was a little kinder saying that the Lions will get better but it was not the start Gatland would have wanted.
"Don't get too cocky too early, New Zealand. This is game one, and the Lions should drastically improve," wrote Napier.
"Perhaps the Lions were nervous. But the worry for Gatland is this will be the weakest side they face in terms of player quality in their 10 matches, and the Lions' collective body language already does not look good."
