Warren Gatland could make history if he hands Maro Itoje the captaincy for Lions tour of SA
Lions tour likely to be like no other, thanks in part to pandemic
● British & Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland will on Friday name his 36-man squad for a tour to SA like no other.
The ravages of the pandemic ensures it cannot be a jamboree.
On the field too it might be a tour with a difference, especially if Gatland opts to hand England’s Maro Itoje the captain’s armband.
All Lions’ tours to SA before 1997 were to a segregated country and the symbolism of Itoje and Siya Kolisi leading out their sides will be hard to ignore.
Sam Warburton, who captained the Lions on their last two tours, has backed Itoje as the man for the job.
Some, like former England captain Dylan Hartley, argue Itoje doesn’t even captain his country and that the honour should go to England’s Owen Farrell. Farrell captained England when they hit a ceiling against the Springboks in the 2019 Rugby World Cup final.
Tiptoed this minefield before
Welsh fans will sing the praises of Alun Wyn Jones, the long-serving captain who led them to the most recent Six Nations crown.
Gatland does not yield to sentiment. Selecting a Lions squad is one of the trickiest chores in the sport. Experience, form, fitness, team dynamics, aptitude for touring and placating fans all go into the mix. Gatland, though, has tiptoed this minefield before.
He will name his 36-man squad on Friday and he will be mightily relieved the stand-off with Premiership Rugby over availability and compensation is over.
He will be sweating on the availability of Ireland’s star flyhalf Jonny Sexton, who has lingering concussion symptoms. He is vital to the cause.
Sexton, who was injured on April 10, will miss this weekend’s Champions Cup semifinal against La Rochelle.
Scot Finn Russell’s chances of making the Test berth his own will increase should Sexton miss out but Gatland may turn to a flyhalf with whom he is more familiar in Dan Biggar. Farrell can also be deployed as first receiver.
Gatland will also eagerly anticipate the medical report on England’s Manu Tuilagi who injured his Achilles last September. His size will carry a lot of weight in the last selection meeting.
Some decisions have been taken away from Gatland. Wales wing-cum-outsidecentre George North ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the Ospreys’ win over the Cardiff Blues last week. He has been on two previous Lions’ tours and apart from his experience in that environment, his versatility would have been gold.
Without North the coach may have to rethink bringing 16 backs on tour. The plan would have been to bring four centres and six who can operate in the back three.
With North out of contention it potentially opens up a spot for Tuilagi who will have to compete for a place with front-runners Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose, Henry Slade and Jonathan Davies.
Also already ruled out injured is chunky England second-rower Joe Launchbury.
Gatland, ever the pragmatist, expects at least two more SA-bound players to pick up injuries before the team departs. And even then it is not as if his perpetual juggling act will cease when they steam down the runway at Heathrow.