Friday 14 June 2013

The Lion Kings?

"You don’t want to get injured the week before the first test. It’s like getting knocked out the in the semi of the World Cup". This is the view of former England and Lions winger Will Greenwood. This shows how much being a Lion means to a British or Irish union player. It is the pinnacle and Greenwood describing it as being as important as a World Cup shows the extent of the honour bestowed on a player. To pull on that red jersey means you are part of the elite of Northern Hemisphere rugby. A Lion. A champion. A warrior.

So far during this tour of Australia, the Lions have shown the incredible strength in depth the possess amongst their roster. The fact that captain Sam Warburton has not yet cemented his place in the squad for either warm-up or test matches is an indication as to the quality available to Warren Gatland. Although it could be argued the matches so far have been nowhere near the test The Wallabies will provide, it is also clear The Lions Squad are dominant and on a whole other level to what Australia can provide. The first real test will be on Saturday when the Lions line up against The Waratahs, the franchise from New South Wales. They are one of the strongest sides in Super Rugby and even without their international stars such as Adam Ashley-Cooper and Berrick Barnes, they will still give The Lions a good run for their money.

The team named by Gatland for the match against The Waratahs shows a number of exciting combinations and it is expected to be very close to the side that will line up against The Wallabies on Saturday week. The back line of Simon Zebo, Sean Maitland and Leigh Halfpenny is arguably one of the most exciting of recent times. It has the raw pace and power of Maitland, the guile and trickery of Zebo and the consistency of the excellent Halfpenny. On paper it sounds perfect, in reality the likelihood is that only Halfpenny will line up for the first test. A lot will depend on the fitness of Tommy Bowe recovering from his hand operation but it is expected an All-Welsh backline will be formed with George North and Alex Cuthbert coming in on the wings. Whatever the combination, it will be a frightening sight for the Aussies.

"We've got almost a full complement of forwards, which is great, but the backs have tended to take most of the punishment" is the response Gatland gave when the subject of a potential injury crisis was raised. What he says is true in that the attacking rugby The Lions have adopted during the Tour has had a serious impact on the fitness of the backs. Gatland is a coach who encourages high intensity play and this has led to injury niggles to North and Tuilagi and the subsequent drafting of Billy Twelvetrees, or '36' as he's know at his club, into the squad. To think this man only made his England debut in the Six Nations, it is an incredible rise to stardom for the young centre.


The proof of the pudding will certainly be in the eating for Warren Gatland and his troops. Will his insistence on playing fast, intense rugby right from the opening match of the Tour against the Barbarians come back to haunt him. Should he have broken in his key players gradually? Of course it could be the case that the Lions roar and the Wallabies simply lie down and play dead. With inspirational openside flanker David Pocock missing with a ruptured knee ligament, it will be down to youngsters such as Ben McCalman and rookie Scott Sio to galvanize the team and make them face the Lions head on. One thing can be guaranteed, the Lions have the scent of Wallaby in their nostrils and are getting hungry. Very hungry.