Rugby commentator Keith Quinn believes the All Blacks will be too good for the British & Irish Lions in the second test match at Westpac Stadium on Saturday night. Quinn has commentated many of the Lions games over the years and believes that this current All Blacks squad is the strongest he has seen.
The man dubbed ‘The Voice of Rugby’ has a record of every single Lions tour since the 1950's. It's the 2005 British & Irish Lions series that still remains his favourite.
“Dan Carter put on a show. He scored what was it? 33-points! kicked a lot of goals, scored two wonderful tries, and we beat them 48 - 18 on the Westpac Stadium," says Quinn.
In 1971, the Lions beat the All Blacks 2-1 with the final game resulting in a draw. The team featured superstars like Gareth Edwards, JPR Williams, who kicked the drop goal to tie the third match, and Barry John.
“I think they only won against quite a modest All Blacks team by All Blacks standards because a lot of our players had retired at the end of the previous year, the tour of South Africa.”
Since then, many teams have come close to winning a series. The last time they won a game against the All Blacks was in 1993. Quinn believes that a lack of unity is one of the reasons they haven't won since 1971.
"No matter how many times you tell the Scotsmen to like Englishmen or Welshmen to like Englishmen or Irishmen to like the English, it doesn't always work out because it's burnt so deep into their DNA."
The Voice of Rugby correctly guessed the outcome of the first test. Unfortunately for the Lions, he's picking the All Blacks again.
"I think the Lions will be better, I think our team will be a lot better. I think that heading to the third test back in Auckland, with a huge crowd in attendance, we'll clean sweep them."
Twelve years is a long time for the Lions to wait for a series victory if they lose in Wellington. A win is imperative to stay alive and repeat the feats of the 1971 team.