FARRELL IS KEY TO THIS ENTIRE TOUR

ToMoRRoW’s clash with the Crusaders is a big opportunity for Warren Gatland’s team to leave their calling card.

Discount the first two matches. Full of jetlag and first- night nerves, those games said little about the Lions. now against super Rugby’s best team i’ll look for world- class basics and structure, not the organised chaos Rob Howley has spoken about.

that approach can be achieved only by a team that has been together for two or three years, in which everybody instinctively knows what their colleagues will do.

the Lions don’t have the time. tomorrow, and in the tests, it must be about the set-piece and deadly precision in the backs. think saracens at their best. that is the template.

Above all it’s about control at half-back. Cue owen Farrell and Conor Murray. Both know when to rein in and play the percentages and both can hit the green button in attack when it’s on. they are the key to this entire tour, given that i expect the pack to achieve at least parity in all matches.

Until recently i was convinced the Lions should opt for a Jonny sexton-Farrell combination at 10 and 12 but the former seems off his game and a rethink is required.

elsewhere there are huge dollops of hunger and ambition in the Lions line-up. Liam Williams is a key player but his debut off the bench against Auckland included two dangerous tackles and a yellow card inside five minutes. He will be anxious to atone for that — and he will.

You could say much the same about stuart Hogg.

Forget a patchy display against the nZ Barbarians, this is the match on which he must be judged and it should be the kind of game he enjoys. George north will be checking in for the first time and it would be great to see the Lions jersey inspire him again. Ditto Jonathan Davies. i am a Davies fan and if Farrell and Murray come through unscathed i would like to see him tried at 12 before the tests.

tomorrow is crucial for Jamie George. Gatland is a big supporter of england’s reserve hooker and now the saracen must show why.

And ireland’s flankers sean o’Brien and Peter o’Mahony will be on fire. sam Warburton and Justin tipuric are the favoured test pairing, the two sevens approach, but the irish duo have real quality and will beg to differ.

one final thought. the Lions still have four players making their tour debuts and another five making their first start.

i make the Crusaders the favourites and that brings its own pressures especially after the Blues win. they could overplay their attacking hand and if they do the Lions must ruthlessly pounce.