Bundee Aki urges Lions to learn from Argentina defeat

By Duncan Bech, PA Rugby Union Correspondent

Bundee Aki insists the Lions must recover rapidly after seeing their goal of completing an unbeaten tour of Australia thwarted even before arriving Down Under.

The Lions slipped to a 28-24 defeat against Argentina in Dublin as they lost their tour opener for the first time since 1971, albeit against dangerous opponents whose surgical finishing demonstrated why they are ranked fifth in the world.

Andy Farrell’s men fly to Perth on Saturday and have four weeks to find the improvements needed to turn their ambitious but error-strewn performance into a formula capable of toppling the Wallabies.

“Faz set out the aim for us to win every single game. To not be able to come out with the result that we wanted in the first game…this has got to be one of those things that we learn from quickly,” Aki said.

“We’re adults, we’re old enough to be able to take it on the chin and move on quickly. Faz gives it to us straight, there’s no mucking around or no hiding here, he just tells you how it is.

“There’s no point in trying to sulk about it. If we bounce back quickly and try to get better every single day, this will only make us stronger and tighter.”

Aki’s heavyweight centre partnership with Sione Tuipulotu generated the most excitement in selection ahead of the sold-out clash at the Aviva Stadium, but the combination failed to add up to the sum of its parts.

While the Ireland centre showed his strength as a carrier to surge over in the first half and Tuipulotu had his moments with the ball in hand, together they were unable to link in the way the Lions were seeking and are unlikely to be used in tandem in the Test series.

“We all know how Sione is as a player, he’s class. The frustrating thing for me was I wasn’t able to connect well with him,” Aki said.

“He’s an unbelievable player and there’s no excuses, we’ve got to get better as a partnership going forward.

“Whoever plays – Garry Ringrose, Huw Jones, Elliot Daly – as a unit we’ve got to make sure we gel together and try to get that cohesiveness fairly quickly because we need to be better.

“Sione has been my roomy lately. He snores a fair bit at the moment, so he keeps me up at night! But he’s a great man.

“He speaks out loud, which is good because we need him to be himself. I just feed off him and he feeds off me. So it’s brilliant, but we’ve just got to be better and keep learning together.”

Aki, fly-half Fin Smith, prop Ellis Genge and wing Tommy Freeman were among those to advance their claims for a spot against Australia in the first Test on July 19th, while Duhan van der Merwe and Ben Earl took a step backwards.

Aki admits that when they arise, chances to impress selectors during the 10-fixture itinerary must be taken.

“When there’s a group of 38 players from four different countries, you’ve obviously got to make sure you perform,” he said.

“Every single player that’s been picked in the squad has to be able to do a job and if you don’t deliver, there are guys who are willing to put their hand up and take that opportunity.”