Lions facing big fight for centre stage
WARREN GATLAND admits centre could pose him the biggest selection headache when he draws up his British and Irish Lions Test team.
The head coach insists he has yet to think about his line-up for the three-Test New Zealand series, despite fielding a potent XV to face runaway Super Rugby leaders the Crusaders tomorrow.
The Lions have refused to risk Sam Warburton, who is carrying an ankle niggle, but Gatland has named a starting team for the Crusaders that boasts a host of potential Test-match combinations.
The Lions coach is excited to see Ben Te’o and Jonathan Davies forge a formidable duo in the centre – but admitted the battle for midfield spots could give him serious headaches.
Of this weekend’s centre duo of Te’o and Davies, Gatland said: “It will be interesting to see how they go, Ben went well in that first game.
“And Jonathan has been playing very well recently in the last few weeks for the Scarlets. He brings that experience. When it comes to picking the Test side, that’s probably going to be one of the hardest to choose, getting that combination spot-on.”
Alun Wyn Jones will captain the Lions in Warburton’s absence, with Conor Murray, George North, Davies and Sean O’Brien all winning their first starts on tour.
The Lions will be desperate to atone for Wednesday’s 22-16 loss to the Blues in Christchurch this weekend.
The three-Test series against the All Blacks starts on June 24 but Gatland maintains the Lions have yet to even consider their line-up for those New Zealand showdowns.
He said: “I said to one of the coaches today, ‘Write down your Test team’ and he couldn’t get anywhere near it.
“Players are going to get one or two chances to make an impact before we start even thinking about any kind of Test line-ups.”