Te'o gives Gatland a Farrell-Sexton conundrum but Faletau could fill the Vunipola void
Warren Gatland has had a chance to look at all 41 members of his British and Irish Lions squad with three matches of the tour of New Zealand completed.
An unconvincing 13-7 win over the Provincial Barbarians to start the trip was followed by a damaging 22-16 defeat to the Blues in midweek, which provided more questions than answers as Gatland seeks his best XV for the first Test against the All Blacks on June 24.
But the Kiwi was left encouraged by Saturday’s battling 12-3 win over the Crusaders, who many had tipped to topple the Lions after winning all 14 of their Super Rugby encounters this season.
A staunch defensive effort and the boot of Owen Farrell proved pivotal as the Lions ground out victory in Christchurch, with their set-piece play particularly impressive.
But ahead of the opening Test in Auckland in two weeks, whose chances of a starting berth are improving and who is falling out of contention?
A BIG thank you to all the Lions fans at the AMI Stadium today – thanks for your support ???#AllForOne #LionsNZ2017 pic.twitter.com/xDhubGI3Zc
— British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) June 10, 2017
KNOCKING ON THE DOOR
Ben Te’o
The Worcester Warriors man, on his first Lions tour, has impressed to the extent that he is giving Gatland a serious headache at centre. In his two matches to date he has beaten 10 defenders and made 124 metres. A fine break in the second half against the Crusaders on Saturday was spoiled by a poor pass to Liam Williams on the wing, but Te’o’s otherwise excellent showing was further evidence of his international pedigree. Should he continue to sparkle, Gatland could be forced to jettison one of either Farrell or Jonathan Sexton from the midfield.
Taulupe Faletau
Billy Vunipola’s withdrawal from the squad due to a shoulder injury was billed as a serious blow to the Lions chances before they had even got on the plane. But the performances of Faletau at number eight suggest the Vunipola void may not be so difficult to fill. The Wales back-row has been excellent in defence, making 24 tackles in his two appearances on the tour, while his 22 carries for 99 metres gained – including three clean breaks and two offloads – mean Vunipola’s raging-bull style of offensive work has been barely missed.
Kyle Sinckler
A somewhat surprise inclusion in the party, the Harlequins prop has become a good bet for a starting place in the front row at Eden Park in a fortnight. Having only made his international debut for England against South Africa in November, Sinckler’s rise has been remarkable and it could be capped on the grandest stage against the toughest opposition. He started against the Provincial Barbarians before coming off the bench to replace compatriot Dan Cole versus the Blues and his performances will surely have caught the attention of his coach.
DROPPING DOWN THE QUEUE
Stuart Hogg
The Scotland full-back has developed a reputation as one of the most scintillating attacking players in world rugby, but has suffered a less than auspicious start to this tour. A couple of errant passes tarnished his game against the Provincial Barbarians, before he sat out against the Blues. Unfortunately for Hogg, his return against the Crusaders lasted under 20 minutes as he was caught by an accidental elbow from team-mate Conor Murray as he chased his own kick. With the claret pouring freely, Hogg failed a subsequent head injury assessment and did not return, his replacement Anthony Watson embarking on a couple of penetrating runs in his absence.
LIONS STATS: @anthonywatson_ topped the metres gained chart with 76! Get all your #CRUvBIL stats here. https://t.co/inv5lYGYCi #AllForOne pic.twitter.com/sVnmxbwHs1
— British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) June 10, 2017
Liam Williams
Having sat out the tour opener, Wales utility back Williams was introduced off the bench early in the second half of the loss to the Blues. But shortly afterwards he was sin-binned for twice taking out an opponent in the air in quick succession – not the impact he or the Lions were looking for. Handed a starting spot against the Crusaders, Williams was a peripheral figure as set-pieces and goal kicking won the day, his only real chance for a try denied by Te’o’s poor service to him on the left wing.
Jonathan Sexton
The Ireland man’s place on this list is more due to Te’o’s performances than his own. Talk before the tour was that Farrell and Sexton would both start, with one taking up the 12 shirt, but Te’o has thrown a spanner in the works. Farrell’s goal kicking was supreme against the Crusaders on Saturday, the Saracens star successful with four while another was missed by the smallest of margins, and he appears favourite to start at 10. Sexton came on as a replacement for Jonathan Davies in Christchurch and impressed following his introduction, his link-up with Farrell particularly encouraging, but his place in the XV is by no means assured.
Comments on RugbyPass
Havili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
61 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
7 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
61 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
61 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to comments