Dai: Lions could not Hask for a better tourist...
WASPS enter their first Premiership final for nine years this weekend, with James Haskell, Danny Cipriani and Joe Simpson the only survivors from that 2008 triumph.
Their 32-year-old England flanker yesterday also received a boost ahead of the Twickenham date when he was added to the British & Irish Lions New Zealand tour party following Billy Vunipola’s withdrawal with a shoulder injury.
Prior to being thrown this eleventh-hour lifeline, Haskell had previously admitted making peace with the fact he would never represent the Lions having missed previous tours through injury and while playing abroad.
And following the Sunday evening announcement, his club boss Dai Young, himself a three-time Lion, has hailed his former skipper’s selection, and said he has the ideal personality for the most testing of all tours.
“I’m delighted for him, I think to finish his career and not to be a Lion would have been a real shame,” Young said.
“By his own admission he’s not firing at 100 per cent yet after his toe injury, but he’s getting better every game, and has a bit of time to go.
“So I’m sure come the Tests he’ll be trying to push himself up there to get a crack at it.
“I’m sure he’s overjoyed, but he’s so professional all he’s been saying is that he’s focusing on this week with Wasps.” Young experienced winning and losing Lions series as a player, during which he played in the test side and as part of the midweek ‘dirttrackers.’ Wasps’ boss remains the only player to tour in three different decades, 1989, 1997 and 2001, and is perhaps uniquely qualified to assess the off-the-pitch qualities which he believes makes Haskell an excellent addition to the party. “You certainly need characters on a Lions tour, people who don’t get too down about things,” he says, ”and I think he’ll be an excellent tourist. “There’s lots of times you need boys to drag things together, have a little bit of fun and a positive mentality. “That’s what Hask will always do, he’s always happy to entertain the group and that’s important on trips like that. “And it can’t be artificial, you’ve got to have that nature about yourself, but then switch straight on for training and games. “He keeps everyone laughing here all the time – at him, not with him! “He’s a real good person who unfairly gets a bad rap at times, he’s great for the environment and he’ll do a fantastic job for the Lions on and off the field.”