British and Irish Lions team: Winners and losers as ‘combinations emerge’ but Marcus Smith already one of two players ‘under pressure’
Finn Russell kicking against the Western Force and Marcus Smith alongside Elliot Daly.
Following the announcement of Andy Farrell’s British and Irish Lions team to face the Reds in Brisbane on Wednesday, here are our winners and losers.
Unsurprisingly, the head coach has made mass changes to his side with Finn Russell the only player to retain his place from the victory over Western Force.
There are also three potential Lions debutants in the 23 as Farrell was handed a big injury boost ahead of the Test series, which starts on July 19.
So without further ado, here are our winners and losers.
Winners
Finn Russell
The Scotland star won’t be the first player to start two matches but he is the only one to retain his place from the weekend clash in what is Farrell’s most intriguing decision. Russell is the favourite to take the jersey for the Test series and, after impressing against the Western Force on Saturday, he is given another shot at fly-half.
Russell’s display was at times understated in Perth but it was exactly what the Lions boss would have been looking for as he linked play nicely and often made the right decisions. It was obviously not perfect – that is to be expected in his first game of the tour – but there were definite signs that he could be the main man when the matches with the Wallabies come around.
There were moments which showed his class and the difference he can make, such as the cross-field kick for Dan Sheehan’s try and his quick-tap penalty for Elliot Daly’s score, but it was the control he had in his game which would have pleased Farrell most.
Just days on from that performance, the talented playmaker has another opportunity to lay down a marker after Fin Smith’s mixed display in the Argentina defeat. Smith has been named on the bench and is likely to get plenty of minutes on Wednesday, but he may be playing catch-up by the time he comes on.
Combinations emerging
It appears as though Farrell is attempting to give everyone a fair crack before focusing on getting his 23 in order ahead of the Test series. Even so, it is interesting that certain combinations have been repeated from the Argentina encounter 10 days ago.
In the back three, although Hugo Keenan gets in ahead of Marcus Smith after returning from injury, Duhan van der Merwe and Tommy Freeman get another opportunity at wing after linking up rather well at times in Dublin.
Van der Merwe is a destructive force in contact while Freeman excels both aerially and in his ability to read the game and get involved. He is also a physical presence with ball in hand but his key skills dovetail nicely with what the Scotland wing offers.
In the back-row, the Lions boss has once again gone for the dual opensides in the form of Tom Curry and Jac Morgan. Interestingly, referee Ben O’Keeffe, who will officiate the first Test, did not reward the jackaller at all on Saturday, but Farrell has still backed the Curry-Morgan combination.
Finally, Farrell has also opted for continuity in the front-row as Will Stuart, Ronan Kelleher and Andrew Porter, who all came on against the Force, starting the Reds clash, with the starting trio from the Los Pumas match – Finlay Bealham, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Ellis Genge – taking their place on the bench on Wednesday. It perhaps provides an indicator as to what the Lions are trying to do with their front-row units looking towards the Australia series.
Lions debutants
There have been a few injury doubts leading into this tour but three Leinstermen have recovered from their respective issues and have an opportunity to prove their fitness this weekend. Two of them, Keenan and Jamison Gibson-Park, will start while James Ryan has been selected on the bench.
Gibson-Park was seen as a certainty for the scrum-half slot before the tour and, after Tomos Williams’ injury, those odds have probably shortened further. Keenan is another who has an excellent shot at the full-back jersey, but Daly’s performance on Saturday and the arrival of Blair Kinghorn will see that battle hot up.
As for Ryan, he saw club and international team-mate Joe McCarthy produce an exceptional display against the Force, while Maro Itoje, who starts on Wednesday, is the captain and likely to take at least one of the locking positions. However, the 28-year-old now has a chance to put his hand up.
Andy Farrell
The Lions boss may have a good idea of what his Test 23 will be but he doesn’t appear to be showing his hand just yet. There were questions of whether Farrell would have an Irish bias but, for the first three games at least, he is giving an opportunity to everyone. It also shows, quite frankly, the exceptional talent the tourists have at their disposal.
You must give credit to the head coach, who has tried to give each member of the squad equal playing time for the most part but, after this game, it will surely be the moment that he will be looking to nail down certain positions.
Losers
Tomos Williams
A horrible blow for the Wales scrum-half, who was exceptional against the Force before suffering a hamstring injury which has unfortunately ended his tour. In his 47 minutes on the field at the weekend, Williams showed the type of quality which could have made him a key cog in the Test squad, but he was forced off after scoring his second try.
As mentioned above, Gibson-Park was always the favourite for the starting jersey, while Alex Mitchell has played well in his two appearances so far, but Williams was really pushing for a place in the 23. However, he has now been replaced by Ben White following that tour-ending hamstring issue which reduces Wales’ representation to one.
Marcus Smith
The playmaker’s absence from the squad is not a surprise given that he has already featured in two matches, but there are concerns that his tour is already beginning to drift. There were some nice touches against Argentina but his overall performance was ultimately mixed, while against the Force he was only afforded 20 minutes thanks to the excellence of Russell.
With Daly also one of the Lions’ standouts at full-back on Saturday, that utility spot could be moving away from Smith. He has also yet to start at fly-half on this tour so if he wants to grab one of those spots – whether it’s at 10, 15 or on the bench – there needs to be a huge performance over the next couple of weeks, if Farrell selects him of course.
Scott Cummings
The Scottish lock is an outstanding player but his tour has got off to a rocky start. Against Argentina, Cummings barely got any game time before he was selected in the XV for the Force clash and eventually struggled.
While his omission is in line with Farrell’s policy of giving everyone a fair go, with Ryan and Ollie Chessum getting an opportunity against the Reds, he would have been desperate to make up for Saturday’s disappointment. The Lions’ restarts were abysmal in Perth and Cummings was the main culprit, leading to an underwhelming display.
In contrast, McCarthy was excellent and Chessum looked immediately at home when he came on for Cummings, shoring up their set-piece. Like Marcus Smith, he is under pressure going into the remainder of the tour.
Wallabies and Joe Schmidt
No doubt the hosts’ head coach would have been looking for patterns from the Lions selections but, as intimated, Farrell has been keeping his cards close to his chest. Schmidt obviously knows the opposition players well and understands the strength of the team he will eventually face, but the tourists have so far given little away.
