As you know, I’m not a massive rugvy fan but regardless the countdown is well and truly on. The web is rife with debate about which players will be selected for the British and Irish Lions touring party to Australia. Odds are fluctuating regarding who will make the squad and who will captain. It’s all part of the fanfare surrounding one of the most beloved events in rugby.
When is the tour?
The British and Irish Lions summer tour to Australia (or winter tour if you consider the season down under) actually kicks off in Dublin, no less, on June 20th when Argentina visit the Aviva for a much anticipated warm-up game. Then it’s bags packed and the long trip to the Southern Hemisphere and a busy schedule featuring tour games against all of Australia’s leading club sides including Western Force in Perth on June 28th and NSW Waratahs in the imposing Allianz Stadium in Sydney on July 5th. As well as facing off against the four main state sides, the Lions will also contest a game against an Australian and Kiwi invitational XV in Adelaide on July 12th. Then it’s the main event: three Tests against Australia in Brisbane (July 19th), Melbourne (July 26th) and Sydney (August 2nd). It’s a gruelling timetable that will test the Lions squad to the max.
Who will lead the squad?
As Ireland fans will know, the Lions touring party this time round will be led by none other than Andy Farrell, the Ireland head coach who has been on sabbatical from the day job to take up this role. As a consequence and aided by the fact that Ireland remains the strongest of the four Irish and British nations, the squad is expected to be packed with Irish talent. And the unveiling will be a spectacle unlike anything seen before, with coach Farrell and Lions Chair Ieuan Evans revealing the touring party and skipper at a Sky Sports live broadcast event from London’s O2 Arena on May 8th. More than 2,000 Lions fans will get to be part of the action too.
Who will make the squad?
Ah, now that is a debate that has been raging since the start of the Six Nations tournament back in February. And every passing day brings a new twist, with another ex-professional or pundit having his or her say on who should be included. And as ever, the fiercest debate rages around who will skipper, with top sports betting and casino sites offering exclusive odds on which player will lead the touring party. And the two main candidates are the current skippers of their respective national sides, Ireland’s Caelan Doris and England’s Maro Itoje. And it’s an extremely tight call, with both men performing and leading admirably in the recent Six Nations tournament. The fact that Farrell is the head coach of Ireland is a big tick in Doris’ favour, although Farrell is of course an Englishman too, and the prospect of Itoje leading a pack expected to be dominated by Irish players is an interesting proposition.
In terms of who else will be expected to tour, there are certain players who are pretty many certainties for the 37-man strong party. Ireland players Tadhg Beirne, Tadhg Furlong, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Jamison Gibson-Park, James Lowe and Bundee Aki are all but guaranteed a place, while other players such as Hugo Keenan, Joe McCarthy, Gary Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, James Ryan and Mack Hansen would all be extremely hopeful of making the plane.
Yet one of the biggest talking points, as ever, surrounds the central position of Number 10. It is a position that Sam Prendergast made his own during Ireland’s Six Nations campaign, but there was fierce debate surrounding his place ahead of Jack Crowley in the green. With the likes of Finn Russell, Finn Smith and of course one Owen Farrell also contenders for the fly-half jersey for the Lions, this is one to keep an eye on every bit as much as that of the skipper’s armband.
We all await the unveiling at the O2.