LONG READ Leinster lions Van der Flier & Ringrose roaring loudly for overdue tours

One wonders how long the photos last when a player snapped in a crisp, new British & Irish Lions jersey does not make the cut. They are surely kept on file, dragged into a different folder, until the final week of a Lions tour. No more late call-ups. The last dice rolled. After that? Archived, most likely. Never to be seen.

The Inpho photography team visit each of the national camps, kits in tow and a Lions representative on hand, and get their shots done when all the best players are in one, convenient place.

In past Lions years, players on the long-list get called down and go in for profile snaps and full-length shots. 2013 and 2017 would have been big affairs, with players comparing notes about who got the call, and who got the jerseys to pose in.

2021, in the midst of the pandemic, was low-key. Conor Murray once relayed to me how it went down. “They sent the jerseys to the team hotel, during the championship, to do the head-shots. Because of Covid, you got the jersey sent to your room and you had to put it on there before you went down to this room, to get the shots taken.

“I put it on and had a weird moment, looking in the mirror and looking down at the jersey, thinking, ‘Jeez, this would be really cool to wear the jersey again and have a good crack off it’.”

Josh van der Flier and Garry Ringrose have been through Lions photoshoots on three occasions now. They posed in the 2021 vintage reds, as they did in 2017. Both sets of pictures have never been seen. They had their photos for the 2025 Lions done earlier this year, but time will tell if the public ever see them.

It is unconscionable these two talented, committed, inspirational Irish figures could finish their careers without calling themselves Lions. They find themselves in close-call territory. Live contenders for their positions are rampant.

No country for old flankers?

2022 was an incredible year for Van der Flier. He was named best player in the Rugby Players and Rugby Writers of Ireland award ceremonies, the Champions Cup and World Rugby Player of the Year. Stung by missing out on the Lions tour to South Africa the previous summer, he broke his game down and built it up again – adding parts to it that he admired in other players (Ardie Savea, Gregory Alldritt, Will Connors, Pieter-Steph du Toit, and more).

That same year, Warren Gatland admitted that he had probably got it wrong about the openside. He should have accommodated him in that touring squad to South Africa. It was a form of validation, but did not make him a Lion.

Andy Farrell has proven, with Ireland, that he backs veterans if they are producing the goods. Still, with four nations to pick from, the squad will have a fresher demographic than his Ireland teams of 2023 and 2024.

Those four awards went elsewhere, the following season. To my mind, Van der Flier’s 2022/23 campaign was even more impressive than the one that sparked his glut of recognition. He went into the November internationals, 2023 Six Nations and every Leinster game as a marked man. He was still as impactful and drove both Leinster and Ireland, who claimed a Grand Slam.

Van der Flier will be 32 later this month. The oldest of the seven back-rows selected for the last Lions jaunt Down Under in 2013 was Jamie Heaslip (29). The only touring players aged 32 or older were Paul O’Connell and Brian O’Driscoll. Hard tracks and humidity favour the younger options. Andy Farrell has proven, with Ireland, that he backs veterans (the 30+ brigade) if they are producing the goods. Still, with four nations to pick from, the squad will have a fresher demographic than his Ireland teams of 2023 and 2024.

Ringrose is 15 months younger than Van der Flier and another proven entity for Farrell. If you were to assess the leading centre contenders for the Lions squad, there is a lack of youthful spark. Sione Tuipulotu is 28 while Huw Jones and Robbie Henshaw are 31. Bundee Aki recently turned 35. Tommy Freeman, 24, has a better chance of being selected as a winger but Farrell may take a look at him at outside centre in a few training reps.

I would have Van der Flier in my Test back row, along with Tom Curry and Caelan Doris. When it comes to the centres, I would lean towards Tuipulotu and, in all honesty, be happy with any of the players mentioned above to start alongside him. Part of me would love to see Tuipulotu and Aki combine – two hulking tinder-boxes – for even one game.

Sometimes narratives take hold in the media and are repeated so much that perception overshadows reality. One was that Van der Flier had a quiet Six Nations. He entered the championship in fine form, scoring three tries in the November Tests and winning each time (nine) he pulled on a Leinster jersey.

Against England, it was a dog-fight. Steve Borthwick selected Tom Curry, Ben Curry and Ben Earl to scuff up Ireland around the breakdown. The tactic worked for the first 40 minutes but Ireland figured it out and blasted clear in the second half. Van der Flier played a pivotal role in turning that game around. He was excellent against Scotland and good against Wales. The big issue, with all eyes watching, was the France game. Dan Sheehan and Caelan Doris fought against the tide, but the rest of Ireland’s starting pack were gushed away. The win over Italy only posed more questions. Van der Flier and his team-mates finished the Six Nations on a wobble, and the final two performances damaged stock.

Ringrose, in a way he would have preferred to avoid, benefited from missing the France game. So did Mack Hansen and James Lowe. Ireland were weakened by their absence. Ringrose had to watch on after his suspension for a red-card tackle on Ben Thomas against Wales. Looking back on the championship as a whole, that sending-off scuppered Ireland’s push for a try-scoring bonus against a beleaguered yet fired-up Welsh side. When France ran amok in Dublin, the Irish three-in-a-row was on the skids.

What do the numbers tell us?

Digging into the Test numbers for Van der Flier and Ringrose, over the past three seasons, offers up some surprising results.

For Ringrose, many of his key attacking metrics have dropped while his defensive output has jumped. From the past three Test seasons, 2023/24 was his best for attacking punch.

Last season, 70% of Ringrose’s carries were dominant (getting over the gain-line) with an average 2.6 defenders beaten and 1.0 line break assists. In nine Test outings this season, those dominant carries are 56%. He registers 1.9 defenders beaten per Test, but line breaks (0.5) and line break assists (0.2) are down.

In defence, Ringrose is up on a lot of key metrics. He has made two turnovers this season, stuck more tackles (56) and has improved his tackle success (up to 76% from 60% in 2023/24). He is also hitting 13.4 rucks per game (10.9 attacking, 2.5 defensive) for his best return in three seasons, and attacking ruck effectiveness of 87% is notable.

It is a similar story for Van der Flier when it comes to attacking stats. This season, for Ireland, he is down in most of the metrics that Opta provided.

The numbers will tell you that Van der Flier is making and completing more tackles than last season, while he has upped his work-rate around the rucks. He averages an excellent 35.8 ruck involvements per game and is averaging two more defensive rucks than in the previous two seasons.

The cases of both players tally up with Ireland’s numbers, as a collective, this season – slightly less potent in attack, more penalties and turnovers conceded, with everyone digging in more when it comes to defence.

Ringrose and Van der Flier would have been in most fans’ and pundits’ Lions squads, heading into the Six Nations. Some folks, with and without platforms, may have got the erasers out, as France and England finished with the momentum. Ultimately, Andy Farrell is the big decision-maker that counts.

Anyone that caught Leinster running up 62 points on Leicester, then 52 on Glasgow, will tell you Ringrose and Van der Flier were playing with points to prove. Van der Flier was man-of-the-match in the Round of 16 while Ringrose scored scintillating tries in both games. Ireland may be figuring stuff out, but Leinster look a level up, and a block ahead.

Test matches are where the bread is buttered. That being said, the Irish duo are doing all they can, in case it comes down to late-night squad debates.