Gatland concerned by targeting of Lions scrum-half Murray

Warren Gatland has expressed concerns over British and Irish Lions scrum-half Conor Murray being targeted during the first Test against New Zealand.

Murray’s box kicking has been an effective weapon throughout his career but Gatland felt the Ireland number nine took some unnecessarily rough treatment as he put boot to ball from the base of rucks and scrums during the All Black’s 30-15 victory on Saturday.

Speaking at a news conference, Lions coach Gatland said: “The one concern for me was, a couple of times from Conor Murray, there was a charge-down where someone dived at his legs which was a little bit dangerous.

“They’re not massive issues for us, but we’re just making sure that he’s being looked after and protected and not harassed after he’s box kicked.

“It’s a little bit tough when you see someone dive at someone’s leg, you feel for the player and it’s concerning that they’re not trying to charge the kick down because they’re nowhere near it, they’re diving blindly and hitting someone’s leg.

“For me it’s about protecting the players and making sure they’re safe. That’s my biggest concern.

“I’ll be asking politely the officials, to look at that and make sure they protect them.”