British and Irish Lions squad announcement: The key decisions facing Andy Farrell
The British & Irish Lions squad announcement will look a little different this year.
Back in 2017 the squad for the New Zealand tour was read out in front of a pocket of media at a west London hotel. Lights were dimmed, atmospheric music was peppered in between a montage of immortal Lions scenes from previous tours.
Ahead of the 2021 tour to South Africa, the 37 names were read out in a TV studio. It was during the COVID-19 pandemic; presenters were socially distanced, Lions legends were streamed in on Zoom to offer their takes, tour captain Alun Wyn Jones appeared as a hologram and chairman Jason Leonard and coach Warren Gatland were suited up and read out the list of names, while keeping a healthy distance from one another.
This time around, on May 8 in east London, Andy Farrell and the inevitable Lions alumni will unveil the squad to fans in the O2 Arena. Those names read out will be cheered and once the list comes to an end, those names left unsaid will be debated until long into the summer as the Lions prepare to face Argentina in Dublin on June 20, and then travel to Australia for their opening tour match vs. the Western Force in Perth on June 28.
The suggestion is Farrell will give little consideration to sentimental or sympathetic picks.
Wales are on a 17-Test losing run, so if Farrell doesn’t deem any of their players to be better-suited than an alternative option from England, Scotland or Ireland, he won’t select them (Dewi Lake, Taulupe Faletau, Tomos Williams and Jac Morgan will have other ideas). Diplomacy be damned, this is not the time for token picks to placate one of the four nations. There’s a tour to win.
But as is the way with these things, plans are always ripped up on the eve of the announcement. Caelan Doris‘ injury on Saturday has thrown a captaincy-sized spanner into the works. Does Farrell risk Doris, knowing he may miss the opening matches of the tour? Does he name Maro Itoje as captain? Does he leave Doris at home?
Those are just some of the questions hovering over Thursday’s announcement.
Here are some of the biggest calls Farrell will need to make.
Does Owen Farrell go amid fly-half uncertainty?
Of all the decisions that Farrell will make, few will prove as tricky as what he does at fly-half. Whichever way he goes here, it is going to trigger people.
Those in contention include the England trio who featured in the Six Nations — George Ford, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith — as well Owen Farrell, who is exiled at Racing 92. There are also Ireland duo Jack Crowley and Sam Prendergast in the mix, all alongside the mesmeric Finn Russell.
It is likely he will go with three here. Ford is playing brilliantly for Sale and would be the ideal tourist, while Farrell would bring leadership and experience to this position. But given he’s playing in France and has stepped away from England duties, this would be a polarising call even though he’s one of England’s finest ever players.
Prendergast is still cutting his teeth in Test rugby, while Crowley largely played second-fiddle to him during the Six Nations. Prendergast has shown immense promise, but doesn’t quite have the same assuredness as fellow youngster Fin Smith, who outplayed him on Saturday. Then there’s Russell. With Sexton on the coaching ticket, it’s going to be intriguing over what happens here.
Sexton has previously been critical of Russell, describing him as “flashy” and the “darling of the media,” but there’s no questioning his incredible ability to marshal a team and split apart defences. So whatever Farrell decides, there are going to be swathes of folk saying he has got it wrong.
I’d go for Fin Smith, Ford and Russell, with Farrell an option in the centres.
Captaincy dilemma: Maro Itoje or Caelan Doris?
Before Saturday, there were two clear favourites to captain the Lions: Ireland’s Doris and England’s Itoje.
Prior to the autumn internationals, Doris was the outstanding favourite to skipper the tourists. He was Farrell’s chosen captain with Ireland and it all looked set fair for him to carry out the same duty for the Lions. But his form was mixed in the Six Nations and he has had issues communicating with referees. Then came the injury on Saturday as he was forced off with his shoulder in pieces against Northampton. We will hear more about the prognosis in the next 48 hours, but Leinster are fearing the worst.
Step forward Itoje, who is now the bookmaker’s favourite for the honour. He did well in his first championship as England skipper, while his form is as good as it’s ever been. He is also a two-time tourist, having featured on both the 2017 and 2021 tours.
There are outsider options like Farrell and George, but given Doris’ unfortunate injury, Itoje is the frontrunner.
Could Andy Farrell pick a bigger squad than usual?
It is expected Farrell will go with a squad of between 37 and 41 players. That offers him the chance to name two completely different starting XVs for their first two matches, and enough wiggle room should knocks occur while also negotiating the tricky midweek matches in and around the Test matches.
The whistlestop nature of this tour — with nine matches played in Australia across five weeks — means we won’t see a midweek side really emerge until the days either side of the first match against the Wallabies on July 19 in Brisbane. So, it’s a juggling act and one Farrell has been weighing up ever since he was appointed Lions coach in January 2024.
Farrell would’ve seen Northampton’s shock win over Leinster in the Champions Cup at the weekend and then met the rest of his coaching staff earlier this week as they squirrelled away to finetune their final squad for Australia.
They had an original long-list of 75 candidates, but injuries and form whittled this down to the lucky group.
Who are the bolters?
Like any Lions tour, there are a number of potential surprise selections.
Asher Opoku-Fordjour is one shout. Farrell will likely go with Finlay Bealham (Ireland), Tadhg Furlong (Ireland), Will Stuart (England) at tight-head but don’t rule out Opoku-Fordjour who plays both sides of the scrum.
Another is Courtney Lawes. He is retired from England Test duty and plays his club rugby out in the PROD2 in France, and his recent form has raised the prospect of a surprise call-up. You can be sure Lawes would relish the chance.
“The Lions is always in the back of your mind,” Lawes told Planet Rugby. “I wouldn’t say it’s the main motivator but I still really believe I can contribute to a Lions team and I’d love to get the opportunity.”
Then there’s Pollock. The 20-year-old is not short of confidence but has sidestepped and hurdled any and every obstacle thrown in his way. He was magnificent in Northampton’s back-row against Leinster at the weekend.
Elsewhere, Toulon’s Ribbans could also get the nod for the second-row, with his 20st, stand 6ft 8in size going in his favour. Other potential bolters include Scotland’s Cameron Redpath, Wales’ Blair Murray and Ireland’s Jamie Osborne.
Will Ireland dominate the squad?
The Six Nations acted as an audition. Farrell watched on in the stands as Simon Easterby coached his Ireland team through this year’s Six Nations. Despite his sabbatical away from his usual day job, expect there to be a strong Irish contingent in the squad he picks.
His backroom staff selection suggests as much: Ireland coaches Simon Easterby, John Fogarty, Johnny Sexton and Andrew Goodman have been appointed, as has Aled Walters (head of athletic performance) and Vinny Hammond (head of analysis). David Nucifora, the ex-performance director at the IRFU, is also heading Down Under. England’s Richard Wigglesworth and Scotland’s John Dalziel make up the list.
Despite some shaky moments in the Six Nations and Leinster’s performance at the weekend, Ireland should still hold down the majority of spots in the squad.
Is the biggest squad battle at back-row?
Farrell’s second-row calls will influence the balance of the back-row as there are some players who can cover both positions, like Courtney Lawes, Itoje, Ollie Chessum, Ryan Baird and Tadhg Beirne. There is a ridiculous abundance of talent at Farrell’s disposal in the back-row.
Look at who can play No.7: Tom Curry, Ben Curry, Jac Morgan, Josh van der Flier, Ben Earl, Sam Underhill, Jamie Ritchie, Rory Darge and Jack Willis. Then there’s youngster Henry Pollock, who shone in Northampton’s win over Leinster on Saturday.
It’s a gluttony of opensides.
At No.8, there’s Jack Conan – arguably the greatest impact substitute in world rugby at the moment, potential Lions captain Doris – if fit – and Wales’ evergreen Taulupe Faletau as well as Tom Willis and Matt Fagerson. Farrell has some huge calls to make.
Whichever way he goes there are going to be some impressive figures left disappointed.
Could playing abroad cost Kinghorn a place?
Farrell appears to be open to picking France-based players but if Toulouse make a run to the final of the Top 14, then Blair Kinghorn and Jack Willis would likely miss the Lions’ opening three matches of the tour.
In any other circumstance, Kinghorn is a guaranteed Lion, but those logistical hurdles will count against him (the same goes for Willis). Others potentially affected by this include Toulon’s David Ribbans and Kyle Sinckler, while Racing 92’s form means Farrell would be available from the outset.
Out of all the areas where the Top 14 could disrupt things, it’s fullback where it’ll have the biggest influence. The Test fullback will likely be a call between Kinghorn and Ireland’s Hugo Keenan, but there could be a chance for a bolter like Blair Murray to make the cut given George Furbank is an injury doubt.
Given the tight schedule, the need for makeshift fullbacks works in the favour of including versatile players like Jordan or Marcus Smith.
– British & Irish Lions squad announcement: Time, how to watch
– British & Irish Lions fixtures for Australia tour
– NEWS: Doris injury could be ‘serious,’ says Leinster boss
– WATCH: Why Owen Farrell should be in the Lions tour squad
Source: espn.com