British and Irish Lions: The six key selection headaches facing Andy Farrell on eve of squad announcement
British and Irish Lions coaches at the coaching announcement in 2025.
Andy Farrell is facing a number of huge selection headaches on the eve of his official squad announcement tomorrow (Thursday, May 8), with some of the best talent possibly missing out on the tour.
Each position is loaded with quality Test match operators, but among that cohort, there are also a number of players in exceptional form for their clubs and are making a great case to go on the tour down under too.
There are also some major injury calls to be made as well, with the likes of Huw Jones, Sione Tuipulotu, Mack Hansen and Duhan van der Merwe, amongst others, touch-and-go ahead of the trip, while Caelan Doris looks set to miss the series, too.
Farrell will also need to decide if he pulls the trigger on selecting French-based players, even if they join up with the squad at a later date following their Top 14 commitments.
Without further ado, here are the six key selection headaches facing the Lions boss ahead of the official squad announcement.
Stick or twist on young starlets
This looks set to be one of the youngest Lions squads in modern history, but there are two in particular who throw up an interesting discussion – Henry Pollock and Sam Prendergast. The pair have both excelled for club and country this season and will no doubt be Lions in the future, but is now the right time?
Looking at England star Pollock first, it seems a bolder call to not pick him at this point after his exceptional outing against Leinster, yet he is in one of the most heavily congested positions. Josh van der Flier, Jac Morgan, Tom and Ben Curry, Ben Earl, Rory Darge and Jamie Ritchie, just to name a few, are all battling it out with Pollock for a spot on this tour and have a lot more credit in the bank at Test level than the fledging superstar.
However, his form more than warrants a call-up. He just seems to have this natural game-breaking ability, as we saw in his try against Leinster at the weekend, but he backs that up with superb fundamental skills as well. Pollock can also cover both seven and eight if needed, too, which is a big tick in his box.
It’s a big call either way, but you’d still expect to hear his name called on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Leinster and Ireland fly-half Prendergast is in a different situation. He is clearly an incredible talent and has shown his world-class potential for both club and country, but he still has some major flaws in his game and that could halt him from being drafted.
Prendergast was exposed defensively against Northampton, with Pollock and Freeman scoring directly from his missed tackles, but that’s not the first time this issue has been put under the spotlight either. The chatter around him also seems to be to take him in order to develop him as a player for Ireland, but does that not sour the name of the Lions, which is supposed to be the pinnacle for any player of these four nations?
He will very likely be a Lion in the future, and a Test Lion at that, but getting another summer with Ireland under his belt and getting more Test experience without it being in the pressure-cooker of a Lions series would be a better call in our minds.
Watch this space, though, as he could easily have his name read out tomorrow as well.
French-based players
The possible selection of French-based players has been a major talking point in the build-up to this squad selection, for some very different reasons too. While the likes of Blair Kinghorn and Ben White featured in the Six Nations, and put in some solid shifts at that, there are some who could see their domestic and Champions Cup performances rewarded despite not playing a Test recently.
Jack Willis, David Ribbans and Courtney Lawes have not featured for England since the 2023 World Cup, but their form in France has seen them come into the Lions discussion. Owen Farrell still remains in the picture despite Racing 92’s fortunes this year and even the likes of Kyle Sinckler and Manu Tuilagi could be named too.
One thing that could go against a number of players across the channel is the Top 14 play-offs. Toulouse and Toulon, which have a number of contenders in their squads, are likely to be involved in the latter stages of the season, meaning their players would join the squad late, and while they wouldn’t miss the Test series it would still be a big gamble to bring them in knowing they will miss a good chunk of the pre-tour training etc.
Does Farrell pull the trigger?
Captaincy call
Doris’ injury has thrown a spanner in the works, and now he will need to act fast to get the right man in the job. The Leinsterman has led the captaincy discussion for well over a year now but, with him likely out, Maro Itoje is now in pole position to take on the mantle.
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Elsewhere, though, Dan Sheehan and Jac Morgan could very easily be possible tour captains. Both men have led their respective countries this year and will also be in the mix for the Lions Test side too so it’s not out of the question.
The Welsh conundrum
It’s been another year to forget for Wales, but that in itself throws a big question at Andy Farrell. Wales have historically been very well represented in the Lions squad, particularly in the past decade with their golden generation, but now there is genuinely a real chance of just one tourist from across the bridge.
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Morgan is almost a certainty to tour, but other stars Tomos Williams, Dewi Lake, Blair Murray and Dafydd Jenkins will all face a nervy wait ahead of the squad announcement given the depth in their respective positions.
But Farrell must also resist the temptation to bring a ‘token’ Welsh player, just to satisfy unions. Wales have lost their last 17 Tests since being knocked out of the World Cup while the other sides in the mix have all improved in that time.
There should be at least some Welsh representation, though, it just depends on who.
Injury club
There are a number of players facing nervy injury waits ahead of the tour. Scotland skipper Tuipulotu was many people’s locked in 12 before picking up a ‘freakish’ pec injury in training, and he is yet to play since. Glasgow do seem confident he will be back fit come the end of the season, though, and by extension be ready for the Lions.
Fellow Scotland stars Jones, Van der Merwe, Kinghorn, Zander and Matt Fagerson are also concerns heading into tomorrow, but they look likely to be back ready for the tour.
Ireland star Mack Hansen is touch-and-go too, with Connacht recently revealing he will be out for five weeks, which puts him in dangerous territory to be included.
England ace George Furbank is also a serious doubt after missing Northampton’s win over Leinster due to a pre-existing arm injury.
All of these players will likely give Farrell food for thought, but will he be brave enough to draft them in knowing they could drop out?
Irish and British Lions
Farrell has gone with people he knows within his coaching staff, but that could also lead to a heavy Irish dominance within the squad.
As with any Lions squad, there are expected to be several 50-50 calls this year, but with the Irish contingent in the coaching group it could lead to those calls going in favour of the Irish player. Elsewhere, it could also see a more than healthy Irish contingent named despite their performance in the Six Nations and in the URC too, with Ulster, Connacht and Munster all struggling.
Farrell and his staff will likely be more than professional and will pick the very best players available, but with the background knowledge of certain players compared to the unknown star could see a few more calls going Ireland’s way.
