Rugby’s Social Media Moments of the Week: Tadhg Beirne and Tom Curry prove doubters wrong for British and Irish Lions

One of rugby’s biggest events returned this weekend, with the British and Irish Lions playing out their first Test against Australia on Saturday.

While the game itself wasn’t the classic that it was built up to be, it meant that the eyes of the wider public were on rugby.

It was the main event of a weekend which saw lots of other international games being played, as the World Rugby U20 Championship reached its conclusion, World Cup qualifiers were decided, and some high-profile Test series played their final games.

Social media kept up to date with everything on show and offered their own opinions on matters, and here is a roundup of some of the key social media moments that you might have missed.

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Zimbabwe make World Cup

Zimbabwe have secured a historic return to the Rugby World Cup for the first time since 1991, following a dramatic 30-28 win over Namibia in the Rugby Africa Cup final held in Kampala.

Their victory means they’ll join 23 other teams at the 2027 World Cup in Australia, marking just their third appearance in the tournament’s history. Zimbabwe previously featured in the inaugural 1987 World Cup and again four years later.

The final was tightly contested, tied 16-16 at the break, and a late penalty attempt by Tiaan Swanepoel narrowly missed, sealing the Sables’ win.

This result ends Namibia’s streak of seven straight World Cup appearances. While Zimbabwe celebrate, Namibia will look to keep their hopes alive through a play-off against the UAE, with a final qualification tournament spot on the line.

Future of Lions Could Change

A potential British & Irish Lions tour of France is gaining momentum, as talks between Lions executives and French officials are set to continue next week in Melbourne.

Abdel Benazzi, vice-president of the French Rugby Federation, has been championing the idea, which could be boosted by growing disappointment over Australia’s competitiveness in the current series.

With France last facing the Lions in 1989, renewed interest has been sparked by the potential for stronger, more engaging warm-up matches against Top 14 clubs like Toulouse and Bordeaux.

Fans may also welcome a European-based tour, given the high costs of travelling to traditional destinations like Australia and New Zealand.

It has split opinion online, but whatever the outcome is, people seem to want something different from the one-sided Lions tour that is on offer this year.

Curry & Beirne prove doubters wrong

Tom Curry and Tadhg Beirne put in absolute monster performances on the flanks in the first Lions Test, bringing energy across the park and having the stats to show for it.

Beirne racked up over 20 tackles, and Curry passed the eye test, with lots of big hits, plenty of softer skills shown and two big hits on Tom Lynagh to let the youngster know that he was in a serious match.

Curry was instrumental in Dan Sheehan’s try, starting off the move by latching on to a loose lineout and later producing the last pass to get it over to Sheehan to score.

This came after the Sale Shark scored a try for himself in the first half.

Andy Farrell came under a lot of scrutiny for picking these two despite their poor form on tour, but his selection was somewhat of a masterstroke.

READ MORE: Paul Rees – Andy Farrell will take it, but a lot more is required from the British and Irish Lions

Owen Farrell Shows Experience

Owen Farrell managed to show his experience without taking to the pitch in the Lions’ first Test, with fans noticing how his reaction to Huw Jones’ disallowed try proved that he knows his rugby.

The rest of the squad were on their feet and celebrating a try that appeared to be perfectly fine. On second viewing, Jones was tackled, and it was completed before he got back up and raced over the line, which is a typical case of try-line fever and getting overexcited.

As a result, TMO disallowed it, but they could have saved a couple of minutes if they’d just looked at Farrell’s reaction, who spotted the infringement immediately amongst the celebrations of his teammates.

South Africa become U20 World Champions

South African rugby has another reason to celebrate. Just two years after the Springboks lifted the 2023 Rugby World Cup, the country’s Under-20 side was crowned world champions.

On a humid night in northern Italy, the Junior Boks battled past old rivals New Zealand in a tense and physical final to bring home the title.

It’s the first time since 2012 that South Africa has won the U20 crown, and this team has written its own piece of history.

Led by Captain Riley Norton and coach Kevin Foote, the young Boks showed grit to secure a 23-15 win. It wasn’t the free-flowing rugby of earlier matches, but it was a performance full of determination.

With standout players like Vusi Moyo and Haashim Pead rising to the occasion, this group proved that the future is bright for South African rugby.

England have strange end to tour

Although England made it three wins from three in their tour of the Americas with a 40-5 win against the USA in Washington D.C, it was incredibly flat and not the occasion that either side would have hoped for.

Before a ball was kicked, the late kick-off for those watching in England was delayed even further due to lightning in the area, making an already late game even later and meaning that some viewers ended up giving up and going to bed.

The stands at Audi Field were emptier than expected, and it didn’t seem like it helped the sport grow in America, which was the intention of having Steve Borthwick’s side travel there.

England didn’t need to leave second gear to get their win, and as a result, the game was incredibly flat. If they were firing, England could have easily put 50 points minimum on the Eagles.

Overall, the game didn’t prove much and was an underwhelming end to an extremely positive tour that saw two wins over Los Pumas in the opening two Tests.

READ MORE: England 40-5 USA – Steve Borthwick’s side seal Summer Series sweep in lightning-affected contest

World Rugby give clarity to South Africa’s kick-off antics

After the controversial South Africa tactics against Italy last week, World Rugby have offered clarity on the incident, and many fans are happy with the outcome.

Their intentionally botched kick-off forced a scrum against the Azzurri, splitting opinion amongst fans who couldn’t agree whether it was another revolutionary Rassie Erasmus tactic or against the spirit of the game.

Those who saw it as being against the spirit of the game will be happy, as World Rugby have clarified that it should have been a penalty awarded for Italy, instead of a scrum.

By Charlie Elliott