Fans fast losing hope of miracle third test

Clive Woodward may not believe the All Blacks' victory over the Lions was a hiding, but the faces on the dejected Lions fans wandering the streets of Wellington yesterday told another story.

Asked whether he had any hope left for Saturday's third test in Auckland, John Anderson, of Cardiff, left no room for doubt.

"Regretfully I have none."

His face was grim.

The reasons the Lions lost were "too numerous" to list.

"I actually think the main factor was the All Blacks are more professional. There are question marks in the way the whole tour has been put together."

He was unimpressed to hear Sir Clive hadn't blamed his planning and preparation.

"That's the nature of the man. I wonder if the [Lions] concept can continue in the professional era."

Further down the street, yet another Welshman, Ian Field of Mumbles, said the tour had not allowed players from four different countries to gel.

"There's too many players to get to know each other. It's too short. I don't know if the Lions can continue."

And why did they lose?

"We were beaten by a better side."

English couple Douglas and Eleanor Paterson were trying to "make the best of a bad job" as the Pacific Sun cruise liner prepared to taken them and 1500 rugby fans to Auckland via Napier this week.

"Clive Woodward's not the most popular man at the moment," Douglas Paterson said. "A lot of our really good players are away past their best."

For him, there was one sliver of optimism before the Eden Park test - Daniel Carter and Aaron Mauger sidelined by injury.

"Could you injure the other 13?"

However, the Sun newspaper's veteran royal photographer Arthur Edwards may have already pinpointed where the Lions were going wrong.

Was it any wonder the Lions were in trouble, he asked no one in particular.

"They're training with a bloody football."

His quip was brought on, no doubt, by being bored and cold on a winter's Saturday afternoon in the backblocks of Porirua.

The Lions, the dirt-trackers who will be asked to front up to an Auckland team laden with ex-All Blacks tomorrow, were preparing by fiddling about playing some strange round ball game waiting for Prince William to turn up at their training run.

Still, in another week Sir Clive Woodward will be able to properly concentrate on his new job in soccer, his Lions dream in tatters. And concentrate on that he will.

"I've always prided myself on looking forward. I never look back," he said within hours of Saturday's 30-point record drubbing which sealed the series loss to the All Blacks.

"I don't think it was a hiding at all. That's too harsh. There wasn't that much difference."

Obviously the All Blacks were better, but the score "got away from us".

Woodward has famously insisted "sport is about winning" - mainly to fend off critics of England's 10-man style of rugby - but by yesterday he had developed a broader perspective.

The Lions concept meant he had to juggle traditions and expectations, and not just the test matches.

If it had only been about winning, he would have brought just 22 players, based in Melbourne and not toured the provinces.

"Personally, I think it's been a successful trip. We've lost the test series, if you just judge it on that, it's not been good.

"It depends how you define what the Lions is about. Of course, its about winning. But you know, how many low points do you want? I spent almost a year of my life getting this done. Just because you lose, you haven't got to be down on yourself."