‘Goal-setting’ Caelan Doris addresses British and Irish Lions captaincy ambitions ahead of massive season
Ireland’s Caelan Doris breaks off the back of the scrum during the Guinness Six Nations match.
Caelan Doris could well be one of the leading contenders for the role of British and Irish Lions skipper by the time the squad is selected ahead of the 2025 tour.
To achieve that, the number eight will likely have to assume the Ireland captaincy next season, but it wouldn’t be a surprise should the responsibility be handed to him at some point during the 2024/25 campaign.
Peter O’Mahony was chosen by Andy Farrell as the skipper prior to the recent Six Nations, succeeding Johnny Sexton, but he is not now a guaranteed starter.
O’Mahony’s successor?
Farrell appears to be preparing Doris to take over from O’Mahony when the time is deemed right, with the Leinster star being given the position whenever the Munsterman has not been on the field.
During the South Africa tour last month, the 26-year-old was named captain after his back-row colleague was dropped to the bench and it paid dividends as Ireland claimed a 25-24 victory over the Springboks to level the series.
However, Doris is expecting O’Mahony, who will play for at least one more year with Munster, to continue in the role over the next year.
“I haven’t heard anything about it [the Ireland captaincy],” he told the Telegraph. “And Pete has signed for another year and has done an unbelievable job. He was tour captain [in South Africa] and I am sure he will be involved in November as well.”
Doris’ chances of being named skipper are boosted by the fact that his national team head coach, Farrell, has taken on the role of Lions head coach.
The 49-year-old will continue as the Irish boss for the rest of 2024 before taking a sabbatical in 2025 to focus on all things Lions ahead of the Australia series.
Farrell’s decision for Ireland’s November games could well be instructive as to his plans for the following year when he is in charge of the famous touring team.
The back-rower is not concerning himself with that, however, acknowledging that lots can happen – both good and bad – in the upcoming few months.
Looking to improve
“It is just under a year away and there is plenty of rugby to be played between now and then. I am genuinely not thinking that far ahead,” he said.
“Over these next two weeks, before I return to training, there is going to be a lot of goal-setting and most of that will be around my game and how I want to evolve and get better as a player.”
No doubt Doris’ first priority will be to get into the wider Lions squad. While he has been the leading number eight in Britain and Ireland over the past couple of seasons, there is plenty of quality players that Farrell can choose from.
“There’s a hell of a lot of competition in the back-row in the northern hemisphere in general. Even within Ireland, you’ve got so much depth and in Leinster, there is quality in the back-row,” Doris added.
“There are always guys coming from above and below. You need to perform, which is a good thing.”
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