Youngs rules himself out of contention for the Lions

ENGLAND scrum-half Ben Youngs has ruled himself out of contention for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa this summer for family reasons, becoming the first player to publicly do so.

The 31-year-old was reportedly one of more than 50 players to have been sent a ‘save-the-date’ letter from Lions coach Warren Gatland.

However, Youngs has opted to remove himself from consideration.

“Whether or not I would have made the final cut, I’ll never know,” Youngs told the Daily Mail.

“I’ve got two young children and my wife is heavily pregnant with the third. This summer I’ve got an opportunity to be with my family and my kids.

“I have always loved the Lions. I’ll be cheering them on, and I wish everyone involved a healthy and successful tour.

“It’s not a decision that I’ve taken lightly, but it’s the best decision for my family.”

Gatland is set to name his 36man squad and captain on Thursday, but a revised itinerary for South Africa made necessary by the coronavirus pandemic has yet to be published.

The Lions have a historic warmup match against Japan scheduled at Murrayfield on June 26.

SIR Clive Woodward has opted for Alun Wyn Jones to captain the Lions over England and Saracens second-row Maro Itoje.

Writing in his Daily Mail column, he said: “Of the two, I would unquestionably opt for the Wales skipper – which says everything about Jones as there is no bigger fan of Maro than me.

“If he takes that form into the Lions series he will be one of the first names on the team sheet

“Lions skippers must have the total respect of peers on and off the field and within the game generally because a Lions tour is a global marquee event in the rugby calendar and is followed by fans from every nation. Everything you say and do will be poured over by the media.”

Speaking of his own Lions captains, the former Lions coach revealed Wales’ Gareth Thomas “was a revelation” when he skippered the touring side in 2005 for the final two Tests against the All Blacks.

“When Brian (O’Driscoll) was injured I turned to Wales’ Gareth Thomas, who was a revelation to me in the way he kept the squad’s enthusiasm in the most difficult of circumstances,” Sir Clive added.

“We couldn’t stem the All Blacks tide but I was left with a huge respect for Gareth and a touching letter he wrote to me after the tour is one of the few rugby mementos I’ve kept.”