The Lions' George North fends off the Reds' Rod Davies during their clash in Brisbane © Getty Images

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Matches: Queensland Reds 12 - 22 British and Irish Lions

British & Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland was full of praise for his side after they held off a fired-up Reds side in their latest tour clash in Brisbane.

The Lions had to dig deep to edge out their Super Rugby rivals 22-12 at the Suncorp Stadium to make it three wins in-a-row following their one-sided victories over the Barbarians in Hong Kong and the Western Force in Perth.

Scrum-half Ben Youngs claimed a close-range touchdown for the tourists, while fly-half Owen Farrell kicked 17 points, but there was another possible fitness concern when centre Manu Tuilagi departed nursing a shoulder injury midway through the opening period with Tommy Bowe also a concern.

"Pretty happy with that one," he told Sky Sports. "It was a tough game and the weather conditions didn't help. I thought we showed great character. They threw everything at us in the first 20 but we toughed it out. They just kept working hard. They keep digging for what was required. A couple of decisions didn't go our way but the boys stuck at it."

Lions captain Sam Warburton made his first tour appearance after recovering from a knee injury and welcomed the stern test provided by the Reds. "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."

Ben Youngs was also full of praise for the gutsy hosts. "The boys worked very hard. Queensland brought it to us. The boys dug in. We knew we would be under pressure at times. We know we will get it right next time."

For Richie Gray, the pressure the Lions were forced to withstand will teach some good lessons with the first Test against Australia a fortnight away. "It was a big step-up, we knew they would throw everything at us. The first 20 minutes maybe we didn't react as quick as we could have. We'll work on that that, it was a great game for us - gives us something to work on."

Reds captain Quade Cooper paid tribute to his side who were better in all areas of the field in the opening stages, something which was a deliberate ploy.

Cooper said: "It was the only way we could get an edge over them, running them around. I am very proud of the boys. We wanted to stick at things we do best, running things around and using our skill, we don't have the biggest backs. The Lions are a great team - we are not happy about losing but the effort we showed was great."