1
What written judgement said about Alex Mann's role in gouging saga
3
{{item.n}}
Lions call-up Owen Farrell may not be eligible to play Brumbies
By Neil Fissler
Lions boss Andy Farrell says that he doubts son Owen will be ready to face the Brumbies on Wednesday following his controversial call-up when Elliot Daly broke his arm against the Queensland Reds.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Saracens fly-half arrived in Australia on Friday but is unlikely to be available until next weekend, and it will be ten weeks since he last played a game, suffering a concussion while playing for Racing 92 against Lyon on 4 May.
Farrell senior admits that his son, who won 112 caps for England before taking a break from international rugby following the 2023 World Cup, will have to wait a bit longer to play on his fourth Lions tour.
He says that he has yet to complete the return-to-play protocols and that Wednesday’s game in Canberra might come too soon, which only leaves the clash with the Australia and New Zealand invitational side before the Test series starts.
Farrell junior seemed to see the funny side of being the pantomime villain when he was booed after being shown on the big screen at the Allianz Stadium, while Dad Andy was brutally honest about his availability.
“He is probably trying to stay awake. But I would think that Wednesday is too soon, as far as jetlag and protocols. I think he needs the formality—he needs to go through a phone call with someone with regards to that,” he said.
Meanwhile, Farrell gave his side a clean bill following the 21-10 win over the Waratahs and pointed out that Henry Pollock was withdrawn at the last minute purely as a precaution, forcing skipper Tadhg Beirne into the back row.
ADVERTISEMENT
“It was a bit of an awareness of a calf strain. His calf was tight this morning, so knowing what we knew, there was no need to risk him,” added Farrell.