George Ford interview: Past Lions snubs made this one less painful

Telegraph

14-05-2025

It was on the journey to Leicester last Thursday that the Sale Sharks players found themselves watching the British and Irish Lions squad announcement on the television screen inside their coach.
For one of the Lions hopefuls, George Ford, only one word is required to describe the experience: 'Weird.'
'For the lads who weren't in contention, it was actually unbelievable entertainment for them,' Ford tells Telegraph Sport.
'Everyone was picking their own Lions squads and having their own opinions. It's different when you're in contention. A lot of that is what makes the Lions so special. It's the unpredictability of it and it being so big, the pinnacle, that it becomes a massive thing. That is never going to change, which is great.'
The England fly-half, with 99 caps to his name, had made the cut on many of the pundits' Lions squads, given his wealth of international experience, his game management and leadership skills. He might not have started for England during the Six Nations but finished the championship with an impeccable cameo in the thrilling victory over Wales in Cardiff.
Significantly, his run of form since then has been one of the key factors that have driven Sale to contention for the Premiership title as we reach the business end of the season, earning him the latest Gallagher player-of-the-month award.
After what felt like an interminable wait for the names to be read out, there was at least some call for celebration with Tom Curry and Luke Cowan-Dickie both making Andy Farrell's squad. But for the 32-year-old Ford there was only an all-too-familiar sense of disappointment.
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'It was amazing for Tom and Luke, who are two unbelievable team-mates of ours. For them to get the nod was great. Obviously, there's a couple of us disappointed there as well, but that's just the way it is,' says Ford.
'We're only human and naturally I was very disappointed, but I have to quickly accept it, get over it, crack on, try and stay in good form, try to win games for Sale. That's just the way I've tried to deal with it.
'Your ambitions as a player are to achieve everything you possibly can so when you don't get selected for something you are disappointed. But selection is very subjective at the same time. Sometimes it goes for you, sometimes it doesn't.
'And I think the main thing I try to pride myself on is being as consistent as possible, and not let those things affect the way you are and what you do, week in, week out.'
He says the ability to move on from the pain of missing out with a clear head and renewed focus comes from the fact that he has twice been here before, as he was previously overlooked for the tours to New Zealand in 2017 and South Africa four years later.
'This was my third time going through it,' he adds. 'The first couple of times have probably set me up for this time. The more you go through something, the more experienced you are at dealing with it. After the initial disappointment, I was genuinely more than fine.
'It happened the day before we played Leicester away so there was no time to mope around really. You have to get your mindset right to play the game. The difficult thing to deal with is everyone coming up and saying, 'Oh, look I am sorry', and that is just because people are trying to be nice. That lingers on for a couple of hours but after that it was all good.
'As players we all understand that it is a Lions year. It is the same when it is World Cup year. But I wouldn't have sat down at the start of the year and wrote in a book that one of my goals is to be on a Lions tour. My goal would have been to just try to be the best player that I can be, to try to improve and to be successful for Sale and England. You always end up where you end up anyway. It all works itself out.
'But like I said, as a player I want to achieve as much as I possibly can and going on the Lions tour is part of that, isn't it? If you ask me if I would love to be a Lion, I would say, 'Of course I would'. Who wouldn't? But sometimes it goes for you, sometimes it doesn't.'
Sale face Bristol Bears on Friday night, a crunch game in their bid to secure a home semi-final, and Ford intends to roll up his sleeves. There will be no sulking, only a determination to keep playing so that he is ready should a Lions call yet come.
'You know this is a brutal game, I would never wish anyone to get injured, and I genuinely mean that,' he adds. 'You want to wish all the boys who are selected a massive congratulations and you want them to go and do well because they deserve it. But things do change quickly in rugby, whatever that may be. All you can ever do, I suppose, is try to be ready, try to be in good form, enjoy your rugby and what will be, will be.
'There is an England tour to Argentina which would be an unbelievable honour and privilege to be involved in if selected. You want to be playing your best rugby regardless.'
If Ford does not travel to Australia, he would be among the strong contenders to captain the England tour to Argentina, with the prospect of winning his 100 th cap for his country during the two-Test series in July adding extra motivation.
'I just try to be myself regardless,' he adds. 'I am the same at the club, whether you have a 'c' next to your name or not, I just try to lead in the best possible way and try to put the team in the best position to go to try to win games.
'If I do get the opportunity to win my 100 th cap, the period of time since making my debut in 2014, I will be pretty proud of the consistency shown to try to get to that point. It is a difficult place, Test rugby. It is a difficult place to stay at the top of your game. Anyone who has done it knows it takes some bloody doing. So, look if it does happen I will be proud of that.
'There have been ups and downs along the way. It is a privilege and honour to play Test rugby for England, but it is challenging. If you think about the story of it, in 2015 we didn't get out of our pool in the World Cup, and then we lost a World Cup final (in 2019), having done a Grand Slam. You get to the 2023 World Cup not in great form and you end up making a semi-final and losing it in the last five minutes. It challenges you, but it has this addictive feel to it, playing for your country and playing in these big games, you always want to be part of it.
'Physically I feel in good shape, which as you get older has a big impact on the way you feel about things. My hunger and desire are still there. The day I feel I can't perform at that level, I won't go past my sell-by date, but as it stands, I still feel I am more than capable of doing that.'