THE last two Saturday mornings have been tough.

The pain of watching the British and Irish Lions with your afternoon and evening mood shaped by a pair of kicks at goal.

The despair of seeing Leigh Halfpenny’s effort fall short was made all the worse by the knowledge that you’d have to sit through another tense encounter this weekend.

Nobody can be enjoying this.

Like gym membership, a satellite television subscription hits you in the pocket and brings pain and hurt.

I didn’t want to be watching when the Wallabies were on the hunt for a winner late on in the second Test, just like I’d rather be elsewhere when on the rowing machine.

Yet we’ll all be there on Saturday, perched on the sofa in hope, despite the nagging feeling that the Australians will do it again.

It would be a lot easier to be among those watching the inane babble of James Martin’s Saturday Kitchen on BBC One, rather than the inane babble of Stuart Barnes and Miles Harrison on Sky Sports One.

It would be less stressful to not care, but frankly there’s something shifty about those that have no liking for sport and leave you in a conversational cul-de-sac.

And I’m sure I’m not the only one hoping to watch Saturday’s game twice – in agony first time and then again later that evening, safe in the knowledge that it’s a piece of Lions history.

Fingers crossed we can all press that blue button and keep the third Test on our Sky Plus for years to come.