Ex-Ireland star explains why Joe McCarthy can’t start alongside Maro Itoje for the Lions
British and Irish Lions locks Joe McCarthy and Maro Itoje.
Former Ireland forward Alan Quinlan still believes that the door is open for other locks in the British and Irish Lions squad despite the performance of Joe McCarthy on Saturday.
A regular for Ireland over the past couple of seasons, the 24-year-old produced an exceptional display in the 54-7 victory over Western Force in Perth.
With Maro Itoje the Lions captain and therefore highly likely to start in the Tests against the Wallabies, some have already nailed down their second-row combination.
Lions’ locking options
Head coach Andy Farrell has plenty of options to choose from with Ollie Chessum, Tadhg Beirne, James Ryan and Scott Cummings all looking to force their way into the side for the Australia series.
For Wednesday’s game against the Reds, Chessum will start alongside Itoje in an all-English pairing with Ireland’s Ryan on the bench after returning from injury.
Chessum, along with Beirne, also have the ability to shift to blindside if Farrell wants to have an extra lineout option in the back five of the scrum.
However, it will be a big couple of games for Ryan, who will come off the bench against the Reds before potentially starting the next encounter with the Waratahs.
“After this they play the Waratahs in another three days so James Ryan needs to start a game and he needs to probably get a nice clean, dominant performance, particularly around set-piece, lineout,” Quinlan told Off The Ball.
The ex-Ireland back-row still believes that Ryan has a chance to take one of the second-row positions despite the presence of his countrymen in the squad.
Quinlan agrees with the consensus that Itoje has one slot nailed down but, if that’s the case, he claims it effectively rules out McCarthy for the other starting position.
Itoje and McCarthy too “similar”
The 50-year-old reckons that the two players are “similar” and that putting them together wouldn’t give the Lions the right balance in the engine room.
“Does Joe McCarthy start with Itoje? I don’t think so. They’re similar – that physical, abrasive type,” he said.
“He still has time to catch up, no problem. For him personally, he will want to be starting against the Waratahs.
“Itoje’s going to start (in the Tests) isn’t he? Really there’s one slot available. At the moment, it’s still Tadhg Beirne who’s going to start there with him.
“Let’s see how he [Ryan] gets on but it’s an important one for him.”
