British & Irish Lions Ease to 34-6 Win over Chiefs Ahead of 1st All Blacks Test

Jack Nowell scored a brace for the British & Irish Lions on Tuesday as they comfortably beat the Chiefs 34-6 at the Waikato Stadium in Hamilton, New Zealand. 

Nowell scored the only try of the first half with the Lions going in 13-6 up as two Stephen Donald penalties provided the Chiefs' only reply. He added another in the second after the Lions were awarded a penalty try, and Jared Payne also got in on the act.

The Lions have now picked up their fourth win from six matches on their tour of New Zealand and will play the All Blacks on Saturday in the first Test match.

The Lions started on the front foot and Courtney Lawes set the tone with a steal from a lineout, per Planet Rugby's Ben Coles: 

The visitors put the first points on the board through Dan Biggar after 10 minutes. Liam Williams had dropped a pass from Biggar as the Lions advanced in search of a try, but the Chiefs were penalised and the Welshman made no mistake from between the posts.

Another poor lineout handed the Lions a second penalty eight minutes later, with Biggar doubling their lead.

Chiefs captain Donald pulled back three points with a kick of his own as the hosts tried to fight their way back to level terms, but they struggled to get going in the face of the Lions' tenacious defending.

The lineout proved the Chiefs' undoing once more when a knock on gifted their opponents a scrum, after which they advanced on the right before working the ball through Williams and Biggar.

The latter was stopped just short of the line, but Nowell reacted quickly to pick it up from the ruck and drive over from close range. ESPN's Tom Hamilton hailed Biggar's contribution as he added the extras:

Donald's penalty on the stroke of half-time was the only source of frustration for the Lions in an otherwise excellent first half, as it ensured they would only go in seven points ahead despite their dominant performance.

The hosts lasted 15 minutes in the second half without conceding as they looked to put in a better defensive showing, but in the space of 10 minutes the visitors sealed the result with three devastating blows.

First came the penalty try when the Lions powerfully drove a maul over the line, and Nowell scored his second by finishing off a superb counter-attack led by Elliot Daly:

An outstanding run and offload from Williams to Payne completed the rout:

The Lions have now strung back-to-back wins together for the first time on this year's Tour.

It bodes well ahead of taking on New Zealand on Saturday in what will undoubtedly be their toughest test yet.

While there were a number of excellent performances from the likes of Nowell, Biggar and Williams, it may not be enough to force their way into Gatland's plans for the first All Blacks clash.