GAT’S GALACTICOS SET TO ROAR
Studying Kiwi culture the key to victory ... and warriors can learn from historic Irish win
THEY are confident they have the right men for the job, now they need the right mentality. Once Warren Gatland’s Lions had been unveiled yesterday, the head coach’s focus shifted from picking players to inspiring them.
Selection had been a gruelling exercise, only concluded the previous afternoon. But having settled on a party of 41 ‘warriors’ to go to New Zealand — rugby’s final frontier — the Kiwi explained the need for hope and an awareness of what lies ahead in those British and Irish minds.
When they begin to congregate in a frustratingly disjointed fashion next month, the Lions of 2017 will be asked to consider one historic match, some illuminating films and ceremonial songs.
There is a point to it all. Gatland wants to work on confidence and cultural knowledge. Both are seen as vital if there is to be any chance of Sam Warburton and Co emulating the icons of 1971 by winning in the country where the ambitions of visiting teams go to die.
Hope springs from what happened last autumn in Chicago, where Ireland ended a century of pain by beating the All Blacks to end New Zealand’s record 18-match unbeaten run. That was the day the world champions’ mortality was exposed.
‘Ireland doing that in Chicago was pretty special,’ said Gatland. ‘To see some of those world-class players be human, make mistakes, show frailties — that gives you selfbelief and confidence. As a coach you’re always trying to deliver that message. Put players and teams under pressure and they are human — they will make mistakes.
‘Andy Farrell was a coach with England and Ireland (when they beat New Zealand). Ireland players have won against them and some of the England players won against them in 2012. You’ve got to go there believing.’
There is an abundance of talent in this Lions squad but there was much talk yesterday of their character, an asset which will be sorely needed.
Forwards coach Graham Rowntree, who went on the last tour to New Zealand as a player, said: ‘We’ve picked the best competitors and warriors to go down there, a mix of experience and guys who have done it before, guys who have beaten New Zealand, guys who have won Premiership, European finals; fearless young men. That’s what it needs, character.’
Then there is the cultural angle. As a New Zealander, Gatland has given it a lot of thought. He wants his assistants and players to know what they are getting into in a place where rugby rules and where there will be unfamiliar traditions and customs to observe.
‘People don’t understand that teams who go to New Zealand don’t go there culturally prepared,’ he said. ‘ The first Sunday, we’ve got a welcome in Waitangi. We’ll accept some Maori challenges and get on to the marae. They speak, they sing, so we’ll have to sing. Someone will speak in Irish and will sing, someone will speak in Welsh and will sing. We’ll get some respect by doing that. ‘I’ve told the staff to watch Hunt for the Wilderpeople with Sam Neill. Or there’s a film called the Wild Ride or another called Boy. It gives you an understanding of New Zealand humour and culture. If we understand our enemy better, we will have a better understanding of what it’s going to be like to travel in New Zealand.
‘It’s a really tough place to tour given the intensity and knowledge of the nation. It’s not going to be like Australia in 2013 when we arrived in Melbourne and people were saying, “Who are the people wearing red jerseys?” They had no idea the Lions were in town. Wherever we go in New Zealand, we’re going to be inundated by fans who are very knowledgeable about the Lions, the players, the performances and the expectation.’
It will be a large squad in every sense — big in numbers and big in bulk. They will aim to blast the Kiwis into submission while carrying the back-up threat of supreme goal-kicking and a decent dash of flair and finesse. While two familiar Welsh Lions, Leigh Halfpenny and Jonathan Davies, have been given the benefit of the doubt despite indifferent form this season, most of those included have fully justified their places.
Jonathan Joseph’s late reprieve in midfield is a positive development that will ensure the tourists have artistry to supplement a formidable artillery. Two other England stalwarts, Dylan Hartley and Joe Launchbury, can consider themselves very unfortunate to miss out, but the selection close calls to which they fell victims do not amount to a scandalous sporting injustice.
England, Ireland and Wales are all strongly and quite fairly represented. There was a surge of Scottish indignation when it was confirmed that only two of their leading men — Stuart Hogg and Tommy Seymour — had made the cut. But many omissions stemmed from two brutal defeats, for Scotland at Twickenham and for Glasgow at Saracens. That much was confirmed by Gatland as the rationale for marginalising one of the four nations. It is hard to dispute his logic.
For now, it is a squad with vast power, experience, competitive fire and youthful exuberance. Now the coaches must hope the majority of their players survive the tumultuous climax of the domestic season, starting in Dublin on Saturday when Munster and Saracens lock horns in a Lions-laden Champions Cup semi-final.
Not a bad place to start forging the right Lions mentality.