'One of the most famous players that didn't tour' picks 2025 Lions XV

Former England internationals Danny Care and Mark Atkinson have picked eight Englishmen in their ideal British and Irish Lions starting XV to face Australia in the first Test next year.

The pair thrashed out their best XV on the Hits Differently podcast recently, with six Irishmen and one Scot also making their team.

Despite making 101 appearances for England, Care never made a Lions tour, though he was described by the one-cap Atkinson as “one of the most famous players that didn’t tour”.

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A theme throughout the team is a battle between Irish and English players, with two English players getting the nod in the front-row. There is an Anglo-Irish propping combination of Ellis Genge and Tadhg Furlong, with Care saying the Bristol loosehead brings “raw power” and “wants to hurt people”, while the Leinster star “changed the game in terms of tighthead props”.

England captain Jamie George got the nod in the No 2 shirt, though it appeared to be a flip-of-a-coin between him and Dan Sheehan, with Care describing them both as “world-class”.

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There is once again and Irish and English combination in the second-row, with Atkinson describing the No 4 position as the “easiest position to pick right now”. Maro Itoje was selected to partner Munster’s Tadhg Beirne in the second-row, with the Saracen tipped to return for his third tour.

There was a greater debate when selecting the back-row, however, with the duo eventually settling on a trio of Courtney Lawes, Josh van der Flier and Caelan Doris, who was selected as captain. Though Lawes retired from Test rugby after last year’s World Cup, and is currently playing in France’s Pro D2, Atkinson said “if we see the same Courtney as at Saints last season, still performing, I find it hard to leave him out of any team.”

Ireland’s Jamison Gibson-Park was understandably selected at scrum-half by Care, who described him as “the best scrum-half at the moment,” but added that he is “closely followed by Alex Mitchell”. The Ireland and Leinster star has been picked to partner England No 10 Marcus Smith, who will compete with Scotland’s Finn Russell, as “the gameplan doesn’t change” with both attacking players vying to start.

The pair settled on a powerful centre combination of Bundee Aki and Ollie Lawrence. Atkinson, a former centre, was effusive in his praise for the Ireland No 12, saying “he’s come from being a very, very, okay player… then suddenly, about four years ago, it was like overnight he became world-class,” adding that both he and Lawrence are not just ball-carriers.

There is equally plenty of power on the wings, with Duhan van der Merwe picked to partner Immanuel Feyi-Waboso. Atkinson said there “doesn’t feel like there’s anyone else to wear that shirt” other than 2021 tourist Van der Merwe, while Care said that his former England team-mate Feyi-Waboso has “got unbelievable gas, raw power, his stepping is unbelievable,” and that “he’s as close to a Cheslin Kolbe as England have got”.

Full-back was similar to the hooker, with another flip-of-a-coin selection, with both choosing England’s George Furbank marginally ahead of Ireland’s Hugo Keenan, although, with Andy Farrell head coach, he may well go with one of his preferred players.

Danny Care and Mark Atkinson’s Lions XV (Back-ups)
1. Ellis Genge (Andrew Porter, Joe Marler)
2. Jamie George (Dan Sheehan)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Kyle Sinckler)
4. Maro Itoje
5. Tadhg Beirne
6. Courtney Lawes (Chandler Cunningham-South)
7. Josh van der Flier (Tom Curry)
8. Caelan Doris – captain
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Alex Mitchell, Tomos Williams)
10. Marcus Smith (Finn Russell)
11. Duhan van der Merwe (James Lowe)
12. Bundee Aki
13. Ollie Lawrence
14. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso
15. George Furbank (Hugo Keenan)