Henderson right in the mix for Test selection despite the ‘silliness of the yellow card’

British and Irish Lions lock Iain Henderson believes his performance against the Hurricanes was “probably overshadowed by the silliness of a yellow card”.

The Hurricanes scored two converted late tries at Westpac Stadium, with the Lions down to 14 men following Henderson’s sin-binning for a dangerous clear-out of Hurricanes full-back Jordie Barrett at a ruck, and the match ended in a 31-31 draw as the Lions’ midweek schedule came to an end.

All attention now switching to Saturday’s second Test against world champions New Zealand in Wellington.

Lions head coach Warren Gatland is not due to name his Test team until tomorrow, but Ireland international Henderson’s quality against the Hurricanes could put him firmly in the selection mix.

“It was definitely an enjoyable game to play in – for the 70 minutes I played,” Henderson, pictured, said.

“It [the yellow card] was frustrating, stupid. Probably a bit of mistimed rucking, I would describe it as.

“Itwasdefinitelyhard for me sitting there for those ten minutes and watching.”

Asked about his Test squad credentials, Henderson – capped 32 times for Ireland – added: “Look, it’s Tuesday of a Test week.

“There are places not necessarily up for grabs, but we are definitely trying to put our hand up, even if it is for the last [third] Test. You are always trying to put on your best performance. “But it is out of our hands. We don’t make the decisions, we just have to be able to put on a performance to try and help the coaches make their decisions. It is up to them now.

“Iwasluckywithafewbounces of the ball and stuff. I got a bit of ball in hand, but it was probably overshadowed by the silliness of the yellow card.

“There are definitely a lot of positives taken from the game. We will take away a lot from our attacking performance.

“There is always enough left [in the tank] for a couple more games.

“It [the Lions tour] has been enjoyable for me. I feel my performances have increased. I have definitely really enjoyed it.

“It would be ideal to be in the Test squad. As soon as we hear the Test team on Thursday, we will knuckle down and help the boys.

“For a lot of the boys out there today, it will probably be the last time they pull on a Lions jersey, this tour, or in their careers. For me, it was about taking it in, and I can’t fault the fans – they were fantastic.

“I was shattered and definitely frustrated at the yellow card, but I enjoyed the experience. There were patches of the game we played really well in.”