Tour match: Battling Lions fall to piece of magic from Sonny Bill

British and Irish Lions' Rory Best and team-mates after defeat to the Blues in the tour match at Eden Park, Auckland.

One moment of Sonny Bill Williams magic was all it took for Auckland Blues to sink the British and Irish Lions 22-16 at Eden Park.

All Blacks talisman Williams’s tight line and offload let the onrushing Ihaia West race home for the late try that dispatched Warren Gatland’s battling tourists.

The Lions botched the perfect chance to set their tour up and running by throwing away a potentially priceless victory against their first Super Rugby opposition.

Dan Biggar will be an immediate injury doubt after failing to return from a head injury assessment, while Jared Payne limped out in clear pain with a potential foot problem.

Rhys Webb enjoyed a fine game but departed late on with an issue the Lions will hope is nothing more than cramp.

Liam Williams was handed a deserved yellow card for two botched aerial challenges on Matt Duffie, but the Lions survived that scare - only to slip off in the final stages after claiming a 16-15 lead.

Rieko Ioane and Sonny Bill Williams claimed the Blues’ other tries, while CJ Stander snaffled the lone score for the visitors.

Leigh Halfpenny’s 11 points with the boot kept the tourists in touch, but to no avail.

Whatever the improvements from the tour-opening win over the Provincial Barbarians, the cold facts are that the Lions lost a match they ought to have won.

A much-improved Lions started sharply on the front foot, only to leak two poor tries before half-time.

Rieko Ioane zipped into the left corner after Haskell misread the play, raced out and caused a dogleg that left Nowell floundering.