The British & Irish Lions’ First Test against Australia threatened to boil over in a moment that left two stars covered in blood.
The Lions enjoyed a brilliant first half to their opening Test match Down Under, dominating their rivals for vast periods in Brisbane.
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And as Australia attempted to spark life into their performance, referee Ben O’Keeffe had to step in to calm things down.
After going 10-0 down early, the Wallabies won a scrum and secured a penalty after Ellis Genge was adjudged to collapsing it.
As the melee cleared, Allan Alaalatoa emerged from the heap of players with blood streaming down his face.
Genge was also seen to have blood across his ear and cheek.
Thankfully, there were no serious injuries and play continued as normal with the Lions leading 17-5 at half-time.
Commentary of all of the Lions’ games is on talkSPORT this summer and Andrew McKenna reacted to the bloody scenes in Brisbane.
He said: “The scrum doesn’t go together, the Lions don’t stay up, it’s against Ellis Genge and it will be a penalty to the Wallabies. Genge’s left ear is leaking blood, as is Allan Alaalatoa’s right ear.”
England great Ben Kay added: “Well I’m not sure. One of them is, and the other one is just covered in the other one’s blood, I suspect.”
Just before the scrum collapse, the first flash point of the match saw players pushing and shoving each other with O’Keeffe calling both captains together to tell them to keep their players in line and stop any nonsense.
He was heard saying: “I know they’ll be a push and a shove, alright? I understand it the series, but we’re gonna keep playing rugby. It’s stopping the game.
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“That’s your freebie. If it happens again, you’ll see consequences, do you understand? Talk to your players now, go strong. This is over.”
On the fisticuffs, McKenna said: “Here comes Ellis Genge over the 10 metre line, he’s still going, manages to get the offload away but it’s knocked on in the process… and there’s a bit of push and shove in the following breakdown.
“Joe McCarthy will tell everyone who’s wanting to listen that he’s actually a peacemaker… but I’m not strictly sure that’s true.
“Tadhg Beirne and Jeremy Williams are discussing plans to meet up later on…”
Kay added: “Tadhg Beirne is just pushing everyone who wants some – absolutely brilliant!
“Andrea Piardi comes in as the assistant on that far side with a big smile on his face. There’s a little bit of edge, but that’s what everyone wants to see in a Lions series.”
Sione Tuipulotu and Tom Curry scored first half tries for the Lions as Andy Farrell’s men started in impressive fashion.
After losing to Argentina in Dublin in their opening warm-up game, the Lions have done well Down Under since.
They have won all of their preparations games in Australia, including smashing the Invitational AU & NZ side 48-0 last weekend.
The first of three Test matches takes place at Lang Park in Brisbane before upcoming games in Melbourne and Sydney.
The Lions on talkSPORT
talkSPORT has all of the British and Irish Lions matches live across the network. Eddie Jones is among the star-studded line-up leading the coverage Down Under
June 20, Dublin: Lions 24–28 Argentina
June 28, Perth: Lions 54-7 Western Force
July 2, Brisbane: Lions 52-12 Queensland Reds
July 5, Sydney: Lions 21-10 New South Wales Waratahs
July 9, Canberra: Lions 36-24 ACT Brumbies
July 12, Adelaide: Lions 48-0 ANZAC XV
July 12, Brisbane: Lions v Wallabies
July 22, Melbourne: Lions v First Nations and Pasifika XV
July 26, Melbourne: Lions v Wallabies
August 2, Sydney: Lions v Wallabies
