Australia’s Kurtley Beale slipped over and missed a dramatic last-minute penalty to hand the British and Irish Lions a thrilling 23-21 first test victory at Lang Park yesterday.

The Lions had led from the 26th minute when winger George North scored the first of their two tries but Israel Folau’s brace in a brilliant test debut had kept the Wallabies in touch.

Beale, who had played little more than half an hour of senior rugby in the last four months as he battled alcohol problems, had come on as a replacement for one of three Wallabies backs who were taken off the pitch on a stretcher.

The 24-year-old was unable to steal the victory for the home side, however, losing his footing as he ran up to attempt a penalty from 46 metres with seconds remaining.

“It was way too close for comfort. The last 20 minutes was so hard, we really had to dig in,” Lions skipper Sam Warburton said in a pitchside interview. “Only half the job done.”

The Lions, roared on by at least half the stadium record 52,499 crowd, also had a try from winger Alex Cuthbert, while Leigh Halfpenny added 13 points with the boot to keep the tourists on course for a first series victory since 1997.

“We knew it was going to be tight,” said Lions coach Warren Gatland. “In all, not the prettiest performance but I think it was a victory we deserved.”

The winner of a first Lions test nearly always takes the series but the home side will take heart from the fact that the exceptions have been in Australia, where the tourists rallied to win in 1989 and the Wallabies came back to triumph in 2001.

“It was very frustrating but I’m proud of the effort we put in,” said Australia coach Robbie Deans. “It was a courageous performance that would stack up alongside any but it is disappointing not to get the reward.”

Injury woes

Meanwhile, Australia’s backline suffered massive disruption during yesterday’s first test.

Inside centre Christian Lealiifano was taken off just 54 seconds into his Wallabies debut after picking up a head injury.

Lealiifano was fitted with a neck brace and left the Lang Park field in Brisbane on a stretcher after getting hurt while making a low tackle on Lions centre Jonathan Davies.

He was replaced by Pat McCabe, who himself departed in the 47th minute after also picking up a head injury at a ruck.

McCabe was replaced by flanker Liam Gill with Michael Hooper, who started as the openside for the Wallabies, switching to centre.

The Wallabies also lost fullback Berrick Barnes to a similar injury a minute before half-time when he came off worse in a collision with his team-mate Folau.

Lealiifano made a quick recovery and watched the rest of the match from the sidelines.

Wallabies centre Adam Ashley-Cooper was also forced off with a shoulder injury in the closing stages.