Andy Farrell sends warning to stars hoping to earn Lions Test spot as boss admits players benched for Argentina clash will be 'twitching' with jealousy
Andy Farrell warned his British & Irish Lions players the battle for Test spots on the tour of Australia starts now after he selected a dual Smith playmaking axis to face Argentina.
The Lions will tackle the Pumas in Dublin on Friday ahead of their departure for the southern hemisphere with Marcus and Fin Smith two of nine Englishmen in the starting XV.
As they did for key games with England during the Six Nations, Marcus Smith will be at full-back and Fin Smith at No 10. Both players have been urged to impress from the get-go.
'This is a full-blown Test match for us. There's no doubt about that,' said Lions head coach Farrell, laying down the gauntlet to his players. 'Everyone's gung-ho to get going.
'Everyone wants to play. I'm sure there will be some lads twitching in the stand dying to get out there and a little bit of jealousy as well.
'That's what we want. I've spent a lot of time thinking about what my Test side could be but you can't even go there because the competition is that good.'
Only two of Farrell's 23-man squad for Argentina were not at the Lions' training camp in Portugal last week. Farrell has told his players to hit the ground running.
'You can give yourself any excuse in terms of time together,' he added.
'But we've had good preparation. If you want to be a good Lions player, you have to hit your straps straight from the off.'
Ireland's Tadhg Furlong is a notable inclusion on the Lions bench. The powerhouse prop has started all of the Lions' last six Tests across two tours but has had an injury-interrupted campaign. Furlong hasn't played since May 17 due to a calf problem.
Farrell also allayed injury concerns over backs Jamison Gibson-Park, Hugo Keenan and Huw Jones – none of whom will face Argentina – with Australia in mind.
Leinster and Ireland scrum-half Gibson-Park is expected to be Farrell's first-choice scrum-half Down Under but has been struggling with a minor glute issue.
England's Alex Mitchell starts at No 9 against Argentina with Tomos Williams of Wales in reserve.
Tour captain Maro Itoje leads the team from lock with breakthrough sensation Henry Pollock – who is on the bench – one of 14 likely Lions debutants.
'It's good news on most of the injuries,' Farrell said.
'They are all a week or so away from being fit. We didn't quite know until Jamison got another scan on Monday night which was pretty positive.
'Jack van Poortvliet comes over as cover for this game. Jamison should be up and running for the week after.'
With Keenan not quite ready and Toulouse's Blair Kinghorn still on club duty, Marcus Smith gets the chance to start at full-back.
Last week, he told in Portugal: 'I'm a 10 that can play 15. I want to play 10 though.' Farrell said of his Smith pairing: 'They were the two 10's in the squad last week, so they've been dovetailing at 10 and 15. It's great for them to have time in the saddle. They're pretty excited to play together.'
Of Marcus Smith, Farrell added: 'We all want to see him being his creative self, helping to guide us around and be cohesive as an attacking and defensive unit.'
British & Irish Lions: Marcus Smith; Tommy Freeman, Sione Tuipulotu, Bundee Aki, Duhan van der Merwe; Fin Smith, Alex Mitchell; Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Finlay Bealham, Maro Itoje (capt), Tadhg Beirne, Tom Curry, Jac Morgan, Ben Earl
Replacements: Ronan Kelleher, Pierre Schoeman, Tadhg Furlong, Scott Cummings, Henry Pollock, Tomos Williams, Elliot Daly, Mack Hansen
Argentina: Santiago Carreras; Rodrigo Isgro, Lucio Cinti, Justo Piccardo, Ignacio Mendy; Tomas Albornoz, Gonzalo García; Mayco Vivas, Julian Montoya (capt), Joel Sclavi, Franco Molina, Pedro Rubiolo, Pablo Matera, Juan Martín Gonzalez, Joaquin Oviedo
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