WHO WILL GATLAND TURN TO FOR LIONS’ STRIKE-WEAPON?
IN four little words George North summed up what so many have discovered before him, and others will doubtless learn after him. Sport can be cruel.
That’s how the Wales international started the tweet that alerted the world to the news that the knee injury he sustained playing for the Ospreys against Cardiff Blues last Saturday would require surgery. The consequence is that North will miss the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa this summer.
Some things are just not meant to be.
But it would take a hard heart not to feel huge sympathy for the 29-year-old.
Criticised in the autumn, North had battled his way into Lions contention with some of the best form of his career, switching to centre at Test level along the way. The effort to return to pre-eminence required huge work and application, plus significant mental strength. As Toby Booth said in an interview with The Guardian earlier this year, North needed to set the reset button mentally. Things clicked for him thereafter. It was one of the stories of the season.
The challenge for the 105-cap player will be to return as good as new.
Those who are close to him have no doubt he will do so.
The challenge for the Lions will be to tour South Africa this summer without the big man. The 6ft 4in, 16st 5lb former Scarlet had been nailedon for the trip with his immense power, pace and ability to play on the wing as well as in the centre.
MARK ORDERS looks at how the Lions will think of replacing their lost strike-weapon.
Straight centre swap
GARRY Ringrose has long been thought likely to tour as one of the Lions’ outside centres.
North’s injury means Warren Gatland is going to have find someone to go with him.
The obvious candidates for the role are Chris Harris and Henry Slade.
Slade is the more subtle of the two, and has been showing up well for English rugby’s premier club, Exeter Chiefs. A former fly-half, he has soft hands, is quick, has good footwork and can beat opponents.
Harris is uncompromisingly strong in defence but can also break tackles. At 6ft 2in and 16st 5lb, he packs a physical presence and the presence of Gregor Townsend and Steve Tandy on the Lions coaching panel will not hurt his chances.
Of the two, maybe Harris is just ahead.
Can we be sure Ringrose is a certainty to tour?
It would be a bold call to answer in the affirmative.
So midfield has become a bit of a jumble for Gatland.
Robbie Henshaw is inked in for one of the inside-centre spots. Who covers the position with him – Jonathan Davies or Manu Tuilagi? One hasn’t been operating at his very best, the other has been sidelined since September.
An SOS to Hadleigh Parkes in Japan? Not inconceivable but probably still a long shot, while Cameron Redpath has limited experience.
Is there anyone else?
The Farrell factor
WHAT of Owen Farrell? With North ruled out, might Gatland consider Farrell as a centre, allowing him to take Dan Biggar, Finn Russell and Jonathan Sexton as fly-halves?
It’s not wildly inconceivable. Farrell played at inside centre twice against New Zealand in 2017, helping to win the second Test with a possession steal, a 40-metre kick to touch and a long-range penalty late on.
If his tackling technique isn’t perfect, as more than a few of those on the wrong end of questionable Farrell hits will surely vouch for, he still has plenty to offer as a centre and Warren Gatland likes him.
The utility back call
GIVEN North’s ability to figure in midfield or out wide, his loss is a significant one for Gatland.
It could mean those who can double up and play in different positions behind the scrum see their chances of touring improved.
Elliot Daly? He’d be far from a like-for-like replacement for North but he’s fast, experienced and he can play at outside centre and anywhere in the back three.
If Gatland’s looking for a utility back, the England international could be the man for the job.
Might North’s unavailability have an effect on back-three numbers?
IT might, indeed.
With the Osprey and his ability to cover wing and centre to Test standard, Gatland had the option to take just five back-three men and four midfielders, in the knowledge the Lions had someone who could cover both areas.
Daly can do that as well.
But if he doesn’t float Gatland’s dinghy, then it could be the Kiwi opts for six back-three specialists as well as a full complement of centres.
It might not have been what he would have wanted.
Could North’s absence have implications for other areas of the squad?
AGAIN, it could have, assuming there’s a limit on the squad size.
Had Gatland been able to take reduced numbers in the back-three because of North’s versatility, he could potentially have carried an extra prop, perhaps travelling with seven instead of six.
The Lions head coach will not have forgotten how South Africa demolished England in the World Cup final in 2019 by loading their bench with six forwards, dubbed the ‘Bomb Squad’, with the impact of the substitutions being particularly felt in the front row.
But with North out of the picture, Gatland might struggle to find anyone of his calibre to fill the role of Mr Versatile in the wider backs, meaning he could have to take more numbers behind at the expense of another forward.
Or something like that.
The New Zealander, then, has much thinking to do in the matter of how to replace the Welshman.
Meanwhile, all in the sport will surely wish North well.
In his tweet he confessed to being heartbroken.
But broken hearts can mend, and so can damaged knee ligaments.
Hopefully, it won’t be too long before we see the big man back on the pitch again.