Rugby’s Social Media Moments of the Week: British and Irish Lions clinch series with epic comeback marred by controversy

The rugby world had its eyes on the British and Irish Lions this weekend, as they came back to secure a first series win since 2013 against the Wallabies in Melbourne.

Beyond the result, there was a lot of controversy that has split opinion online, and some history was broken in the second Test victory for the visitors.

Elsewhere, a couple of nations took big strides towards qualifying for the 2027 World Cup with some big results that have gone under the radar with the Lions series on.

Because there has been so much to talk about, it has been hard to keep up with all of the social media posts about the sport, and here are the biggest social media moments from this weekend.

Lions Win Series with Historic Comeback

The British and Irish Lions have sealed a stunning series victory, clinching an unassailable 2-0 lead in dramatic fashion.

Few things in rugby match the significance of a Lions series win; rarer still is the manner of this comeback triumph.

Trailing 23-5 after a Wallabies blitz of three tries in nine minutes, the Lions looked rattled and on the brink.

But led by Maro Itoje‘s resilient squad, they mounted a fierce fightback in front of over 90,000 fans in Brisbane.

Tom Curry, Huw Jones, and Tadhg Beirne powered over with key second-half tries, narrowing the gap before Hugo Keenan sealed the deal in the 79th minute.

Finn Russell’s calm head and creative spark proved decisive, while the Lions dominated the final hour 24-3.

It’s the first time since 1997 that a touring Lions side has wrapped up the series before the final Test.

Dan Sheehan’s Dive Debated

In the Lions’ comeback, there were a couple of refereeing decisions that have split opinion on social media, mainly from Wallabies fans who disagree with the two calls that went against them.

Firstly, Dan Sheehan’s try consisted of him diving over a tackle to get to the try line. The ruling is that a player cannot dive over a tackle anymore, due to player safety, but they can dive when in the act of attempting to score a try.

Given that Sheehan’s dive came as he was putting the ball down, he can be considered to be in the act of attempting to score a try. Despite this, some (mainly Australian) fans believe that he should not have been able to dive over any tackle.

It marked the Ireland hooker’s 16th try in 16 games this season and capped off what has been a very impressive tour for him personally.

Jac Morgan – Illegal clearout or not?

Another, even more contentious, decision that fans have been debating was Jac Morgan’s clearout on Carlo Tizzano in the buildup to Hugo Keenan’s winning try.

Some fans believed that there was foul play in his clearout, in which there was shoulder-to-head contact and a high degree of danger.

The reason why it wasn’t given was that he was low enough that it was deemed not to be foul play, and as a result, the winning try ended up being given.

Australian fans have strongly disagreed with the decision and believe that they were potentially robbed.

Lions beat the FIFA World Cup final attendance

A record-breaking 90,307 fans packed the Melbourne Cricket Ground to witness the Lions win over the Wallabies.

The attendance set a new benchmark for a Lions fixture, eclipsing the previous record of 84,188 set in 2001.

MCG, typically a cricket and AFL stronghold, became a roaring sea of red and gold as the Lions edged Australia 29-26 to clinch the series.

It also means that this game was better attended than the most recent FIFA World Cup final for football, something which fans have picked up on and used as a reason to show just how popular rugby is.

World Cup Qualification Movements

In South America, qualification for the 2027 World Cup progressed, and Chile saw off Brazil in their second leg to secure a place in the South American qualifier final, where they will face the winner of Uruguay and Paraguay for a place in the World Cup.

Los Condores beat Brazil 35-20 at home after winning the first leg too, in what was a strong couple of games from Pablo Lemoine’s side against a tough and valiant opposition.

Elsewhere, Namibia put last week’s disappointment against Zimbabwe behind them and beat the United Arab Emirates 86-29 in Uganda to reach the Repecharge and keep their qualification hopes alive.

By Charlie Elliott

READ MORE: British and Irish Lions leave it late to find fitting way to win series against Wallabies