Coach’s leap of faith gives selected squad a chance to be history boys
WARREN Gatland has said same again for Saturday’s deciding Test against the All Blacks at Auckland’s Eden Park. Here is our verdict on the unchanged teamhoping to make history in the Test series. 15. Liam Williams When Williams finished Wednesday’s training session early because of tightness in his leg, the alarm bells started ringing.
Might he miss out and, if so, what would the Lions do? Would they draft fellow Welshman Leigh Halfpenny straight in at full-back or move Anthony Watson to 15 with Jack Nowell coming onto the wing? As it has turned out, Williams has been named in the side.
Aside from fitness issues, there might have been a case for going for Halfpenny’s aerial solidity. But, to beat the All Blacks, you need to score tries and you have more chance of doing that with Williams’ attacking threat from the back. 14. Anthony Watson The victim of the pivotal incident during the second Test, when he took a no-arms shoulder charge to the head from Sonny Bill Williams, resulting in a red card for the All Blacks centre.
Watson did well to shake off what was a pretty shuddering impact, returning to the field after passing a HIA. He showed no ill effects and no lack of physical commitment. Has been the first-choice wing since his twisting, turning try in the opening game in Whangarei. You would just love to see him get a chance to take on the Kiwi defence this weekend. 13. Jonathan Davies To start every Test on two successive Lions tours is some achievement and that’s a full house Davies will complete when he steps out at Eden Park on Saturday.
At times over the past four years, he has struggled to recapture the outstanding form he showed in Australia in 2013, amid assorted injury issues. But, at just the right time, he has returned to his best, with his astute reading of the opposition defence and the knack he has of picking the right angle and exactly when to straighten up. 12. Owen Farrell Well, it worked. Going for the SextonFarrell 10-12 combination in the second Test was seen as a gamble by some, but it paid off. The way the pair linked up twice for the opening try from Taulupe Faletau summed up precisely why they had been paired together. It was all about the quality of the passing.
There’s inevitably a gain-line price to be paid in Ben Te’o’s absence, but the creative positives outweighed that in Wellington, while Farrell’s nerveless goal-kicking was a key factor in the victory. 11. Elliot Daly According to Neil Jenkins, Daly has a cannon attached to his hip and his long-range place-kicking could yet be an invaluable asset in a game which could be close and decided by indiscipline.
He didn’t have have much opportunity to show off his wheels at the Westpac and there certainly would have been other back-three options, but Gatland has opted to stick with his trio of counter-attackers in the back three. 10. Johnny Sexton With two such quality alternatives as Owen Farrell and Dan Biggar on hand, it’s no mean feat to be No.10 in the Tests out here and that’s the jersey Sexton wears once again this week, indicating how his tour has blossomed after a tricky start.
Mojo restored, the Irishman is now back playing the kind of influential role he did for the Lions in Australia four years. With Farrell alongside him, you now have game management of the highest order. 9. Conor Murray Neil Jenkins put it nicely when he said the kick Murray sent dead off a restart in Wellington proved he was human after all, as it was just about his first mistake on tour. The Munsterman has indeed had an outstanding trip, making a strong case to be considered the best scrum-half in the world.
With the tourists on the back foot for much of the opener in Auckland, it was more of a rearguard action from Murray, but he reminded us just what an attacking threat he can be last week, with his little show, a dummy, a step and a dart to score the levelling try. 1. Mako Vunipola The position there was probably most debate over, with Vunipola having given away four penalties in Wellington, including a second illegal hit on Beauden Barrett which earned him a yellow card.
With indiscipline having been such a hot topic among the coaches this week, one wondered whether Vunipola’s might cost him his place, with the solid Jack McGrath ushered into the side. But the bottom line is Mako has been the man on the loosehead on this trip. 2. Jamie George So what if he hasn’t started a Test for England? Who cares? That was the one concern about George going into the series. There was no questioning his ability, but did he have the big-match experience?
Well, George has answered the question most emphatically. He has shown he is ready. He hasn’t just risen to the occasion, he has emerged as something of a figurehead with his vocal presence and maturity.
In hugely-challenging conditions in windy Wellington, he hit his lineout targets and hurled himself into the collisions, while that burst which led to Murray’s decisive try will go down in hooking folklore.
3. Tadhg Furlong There was much talk about wounded pride after the first Test and Furlong would have taken it as a real blow to his that one scrum was shunted backwards in the build-up to Ioane’s first try.
So he would have wanted to set the record straight in Wellington and this he did, with a couple of mighty shoves. He also contributed notably around the park and remains one of the first names on the team-sheet, with his back-up Kyle Sinckler needing to show a cooler head if called off the bench this week. 4. Maro Itoje How a young man of 22 copes with 20,000 people singing his name is anyone’s guess. Last Saturday in Wellington was the night when Itoje’s career moved into another stratosphere.
Cult-hero status has arrived for the lad from London. Hopefully he will take it all in his stride.
Moreover he knows he has to sharpen up his discipline having given away a couple of soft penalties at the Westpac. But the huge overall contribution he made meant he was a certainty to retain his spot. Cue the Red Army. “Ohhh, Maro Itoje”. 5. Alun Wyn Jones Now a member of a very, very exclusive club as one of only seven men to have won Lions’Tests against South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. What a record.
There had been those who questioned his position in the team and still now some argue Courtney Lawes should start. But it can’t be underestimated what a key role Jones played in setting the tone for the “in your face” approach from the Lions in Wellington, making an absolute nuisance of himself in the contact area. 6. Sam Warburton (c) Vindicated his call-up to the team by doing just what Gatland had asked of him, bringing greater physicality in the collisions and at the breakdown.
Along with the likes of Alun Wyn Jones, Sean O’Brien and Itoje, he played an absolutely pivotal role in slowing down the speed of the All Blacks ball, which had been such a problem area in the first Test. His tireless graft in the contact area also enabled fellow flanker O’Brien to do what he does best. 7. Sean O’Brien When I was asked earlier this week to pick my Man of the Series so far, I thought long and hard and weighed up a number of candidates, including the likes of Jonathan Davies, Kieran Read, Jamie George, Maro Itoje and Tadhg Furlong. In the end, I plumped for O’Brien. He has stood out in the first two Tests and been a non-stop bundle of energy, bringing such intensity and dynamism to his game. The fella just keeps on coming at you.
The dismissal of the citing levelled against the fearless flanker was a huge boost for the Lions. 8. Taulupe Faulupe Israel Dagg will still be having nightmares involving a certain large gentleman bearing down on him. Faletau’s finish was so important last weekend because it got the Lions back into the game just when they needed it.
There was still plenty for him to do as he received the ball from Liam Williams out wide with Dagg in his path. But there was no panic. It was also the icing on the cake of another hugely-industrious effort from Mr Consistent. Reps: Ken Owens, Jack McGrath, Kyle Sinckler, Courtney Lawes, CJ Stander, Rhys Webb, Ben Te’o, Jack Nowell.