Andy Farrell says he never doubted his side as they came from behind to beat Australia and clinch their Test series with a game to spare.
It looked like the sides would be heading to a deciding Test in Sydney next week when the Wallabies raced into a 23-5 lead after just 30 minutes, with tries for James Slipper, Jake Gordon and Tom Wright blitzing the Lions in a 10-minute period, two of those coming while Tommy Freeman was in the sin-bin.
The Lions cut the gap to just six points before half time with tries for Tom Curry and Huw Jones, but they trailed by two heading into the final minute, before Hugo Keenan's try after 79 minutes – and an agonising wait for it to be cleared by the TMO.
The turnaround from 18 points down to win is the biggest ever comeback from the Lions in a Test match, but Farrell says his belief never wavered, even as the wheels fell off in the opening half.
"It is a special moment for everyone," the head coach said after the epic contest at the MCG.
"We are absolutely delighted that we showed the courage and what it takes to be a Lion.
"These lads have dreamed of being a British and Irish Lion all their lives and to get to the point, when we come to the MCG with 90-odd thousand people with a dramatic finish like that, to win the series is, what dreams are made of and no one can deny that for us now."
The game flipped with Curry (above) and Jones’ tries reducing an 18-point deficit to just six before the break, but Farrell says he remained confident, even when trailing 23-5.
"Honestly, I would still have backed us to get into that game. Is that being facetious or whatever? I don't think so.
"I know what this team's capable of. The simple message was we handed them a 23-5 lead through our ill-discipline and lack of control of the game. It was clear and obvious to us how we needed to get back into the game."
And Farrell hailed his players’ composure in the final stages, as they worked their way up the pitch for one final assault on the Walalbies’ line.
"I thought we were tremendous in those [final] 10 minutes.
"At the end of the game, I thought we were outstanding in how we went about our business, how calm we were, never panicking, never wavered from what we were trying to do.
"It wasn’t all going our way in the second half but the way we held our nerve when we got down to that last 10 minutes was outstanding.
"Have a look at the carries we had, getting over the gainline, people constantly offering themselves, the breakdown and the instinct we had to just keep on playing. It just shows the courage of the side," Farrell (below) added.
The Wallabies were furious that Keenan’s late try stood, with referee Andrew Piardi confirming the score after a TMO check on Jac Morgan’s clear-out on Carlo Tizzano.
Head coach Joe Schmidt claimed the match officials didn’t uphold World Rugby’s drive for greater player safety by allowing the score, but naturally Farrell disagreed with his former Ireland colleague.
"I thought it was a brilliant clear out. It depends which side of the fence you come from. I can understand people’s opinions.
"I thought Jac was brilliant when he came on and so were the rest of the bench."
The celebrations will be long through Sunday and Monday, with the players set to be given two days off to enjoy their win.
Farrell and his captain Maro Itoje (below) could hardly be heard in their post-match press conference, as the singing from the Lions' changing room drowned the room out; 'Whoomp! (There It Is)' kicked it all off, before their own version of 'Rockin' All Over the World', which was followed by, among others, 'Sweet Caroline', 'You Raise Me Up' and 'Angels'. All the hits.
While Farrell says his players will enjoy their success this evening, they will be giving Saturday’s third Test in Sydney the full respect it deserves as they look to complete a famous whitewash.
And he gave huge credit to the hosts for their performance, with Australia coming within a minute of a famous upset.
"Fair play, they turned up. They said they were going to turn up physically but it wasn’t just that, they played a great brand of rugby whether it be their kicking game, 50-22s etc, moving the ball around.
"They played a great brand of rugby but we added to that with our discipline in the first half, but we kept on fighting a way, that is the best thing about it."
