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Reds-Lions recap

Sky Sports brings you all the best of the action, reaction and opinion from the Suncorp Stadium.

The British and Irish Lions made it three wins out of three on their 2013 tour with a hard-fought win against the Reds.

How the Lions rated

The British and Irish Lions made it three wins out of three with their closely-fought clash with the Reds. Ben Youngs scored their only try at the Suncorp Stadium, while Owen Farrell landed 17 points from the kicking tee. The result means the the Lions remain unbeaten on the 2013 tour, having already seen off the challenges of the Barbarians and the Western Force. Following the victory in Brisbane, we assess how the tourists fared in their latest build up towards the three-Test series.

Gatland proud of performance

British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland was proud of his side after they ground out a 22-12 win over Queensland Reds. "I'm pretty happy with the performance," said Gatland. "We missed a couple of try-scoring opportunities. It was a tough game and the weather conditions in the second half didn't help; it became a territory game. We showed great courage and that's what the Lions is all about. The Reds threw everything at us in the first 20 but we soaked up the pressure. I'm really proud of that performance."

Warburton welcomes big test

British and Irish Lions captain Sam Warburton welcomed the tough test provided by Queensland in their enthralling 22-12 win over the Reds. The Reds led until Ben Youngs claimed a close-range try on 34 minutes and Owen Farrell kicked 17 points. Warburton said: "It was great to get the win, it was a really tough one. We expected that all week. It was great for us - we knew the Reds in attack would offer a lot today and they made it tough for us."

Bowe joins Lions casualties

Tommy Bowe will miss the rest of the Lions' tour after suffering a hand injury against the Reds. The Ireland winger, who was expected to start in the opening Test against the Wallabies, broke his hand during a 22-10 victory over the Reds. The news is another miserable chapter in a bad year for Bowe, who missed the Six Nations with knee ligament damage. Head coach Warren Gatland said: "We probably will bring someone out. It's huge because Tommy brings experience and the ability to play left wing, right wing, centre and full-back. It's a huge loss for us."

Gray pleased with tough outing

Richie Gray admits there is plenty of room for improvement after the Lions defeated the Reds. The second row impressed during the 22-12 win in Brisbane but the Reds exposed some defensive frailties and outscored the tourists by two tries to one. "That was a big step up from the Barbarians game, but one we fully expected," said Gray. "We knew they were going to throw everything at us and pull out their bag of tricks. In the first 20 minutes we didn't react as quickly as we should have done, but we dug in, sorted things out and I felt we did well defensively from that point on."

The lowdown

The Sky Sports panel give their verdict on the 22-12 victory over the Reds in Brisbane. Sky Sports expert Stuart Barnes said: "If the Reds had their full quota of players they may well have won. But then again this is nowhere near a Test strength Lions team and that has to be recognised as well. The other thing we need to take out of this game is that the style of the Reds is not how Australia are going to be playing against the Lions. They are far more fluid and they put a lot more width on it."

Reds 12 British and Irish Lions 22 - As it happened

Relive the British and Irish Lions' victory against the Reds in Brisbane with our commentary from the match. Click here for the game as it happened, or click here for the best of the images. Watch every Lions game live only on Sky Sports. Click here to sign up or upgrade now.

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