Calling for a 'leader' mid-Tour is selection absurdity - Only One F in Foley

Irish Daily Mirror

06-07-2025

The decisions will have to come hard and fast from Andy Farrell from herein as the reality begins to sink in.
He has learned little from assembly, travel and four games to here - and some of what has learned has had to be revised.
Imagine spending your time with the certainty that the earth was flat only to find out the gang of geeks at the back of the class - Pythagoras, Permenides, Aristotle and Eratosthenes - were right all along.
Turns out they weren't geeks after all; they were 'Greeks', you'd misheard, got that wrong too.
This Lions squad assembled in Dublin 28 days ago (June 9th), played and lost against a highly motivated, world-ranked fifth opposition, Argentina, 13 days later and lost...
Left for Australia the next day (June 21st) and set about on what was hoped would be a learning curve, aimed at sorting out Test selection, with facile wins over ready-up sides Force (June 28) and Reds (July 2nd).
Only to slide down a greasy pole with an unnervingly listless display against Waratahs yesterday, another team they were supposed to have a handy training spin against.
The 'Tahs did Farrell few favours, not least in allowing a few players back into the Test selection mix; last Friday night there was a list of eight players who were not going to be involved in the first Test, they had played and weren't up to scratch.
Then came the game in Sydney and four of those played themselves back into contention in face of almost everyone else in the starting Xv looking like they were there after a night on the town.
Charlie Gamble, the Waratahs no7, was the real Man of the Match no matter how desperate a fawning Lions supporting media wanted to give the TV bauble to a red shirt.
Moreover the 29 year-old uncapped journeyman's (59 Waratahs appearances 2020-) moustache - which could probably store enough food for a 20-day outback walkabout, maybe even fight off wild animals - was the second best thing about the game.
And given Farrell had gone into the game with a 'list' of eight players who had dropped off into the dirt-tracked category, Marcus Smith, Huw Jones, Pierre Schoeman, Scott Cummins, James Ryan, Tom Curry, Ben Earls...
Plus Ben White, called in for the unfortunate Tomas Williams, and who to be fair doesn't have any blame attached to being the eighth.
So imagine the confusion as the done-to-there jig-saw gets tipped over as Cummins and Jones (along with Alex Mitchell) looked the best Lions on the pitch, Schoeman wins four scrum penalties from eight scrums and Earls rehabilitates himself as a contender for no8.
If there was a notional first XV and matchday bench in place after the squad was announced it was always going to take a buffeting once the games began - no plan survives first contact.
But three games in and having weeded out eight players, when it comes to four games in there are still 34 contenders and, embarrassingly, a player who has been called in has leap-frogged into contention before kicking a ball.
Hello, my name is Owen Farrell: I can play out-half and first-centre or if deployed on the bench could be considered a utility centre or full-back too.
Hello Owen, my name is Mr Every Lions Fan: Is it true that despite landing and assuming the role of the 40th player chosen you are now considered a real option because you have a 'stern' face...
That the Lions management, who left you out of initial calculations, have brought you in when a player who does not play your position got injured - have looked at the raggle-taggle gypsy band to here and decried a lack of leadership?
Consider this: Those who selected the Lions squad in the first place would have worked off a set list of criteria, sat down at no doubt exhaustive meetings and discussed with the boss - who remember had six months away from his day job with Ireland - who should travel.
Skillsets, ability, form, durability, x-factorability, adaptability in terms of playing more than one position, disciplinary history, leadership qualities would have been in the mix.
And that last one has ever so clearly been misjudged. There may be a very good reason for it too. It is, after all, hard to measure from a different foxhole.
So when Chief of Staff Farrell (Ireland) along with Simon Easterby (Ireland), John Fogarty (Ireland), Andrew Goodman (Ireland), Aled Walters (Ireland), David Nucifora (IRFU 2014-24) and, undoubtedly, Johnny Sexton (Ireland) sat down to discuss this...
The two most junior ranking coaches John Dalziel (Scotland) who is the lineout specialist and Richard Wigglesworth (England) who was appointed to his current England role in February 2023 can't have had much sway.
Farrell is not wrong in bringing in his son Owen and he wouldn't have needed testimony from any of the other eight to make the decision.
But this whole episode also asks questions of just how unlucky Scotland captain Rory Darge, Wales's Taulupe Faletau, Northampton's captain George Furbank, Bath's captain Ben Spencer or even Toulouse's Jack Willis were, not to have their leadership traits on tour.
Scotland captain Darge and Faletau played in the 2025 Six Nations; Furbank and Spencer are the captains at their respective clubs and played in the November series for England while the latter starred in England's outstanding 35-12 win over Argentina in Buenos Aires at the weekend.
European Cup winner Willis is ineligible to play for England under RFU instructions as he plays abroad.
There are two theories as to what happens next in Australia as there are two games to come, against Brumbies (July 9th, this Wednesday) and against an Australia/New Zealand XV (July 12th) before the First Test (July 19th).
The Brumbies were the best performing Australian 2025 Super Rugby club, making the semi-finals; the ANZAC selection up, will be a big step the toughest proposition to here; the move to Test rugby against the Wallabies will be on a different landing altogether.
The Lions can either show their Test hand against Brumbies, which seems to be a majority opinion among observers.
Or has Ronan O'Gara got it right when he says keep the potential Test side for the tougher of the two games, against Aus/NZ.
This, he stressed, beds them down into a familiar international Monday-Friday week, working as they would in the Six Nations for a Saturday game.
ATM the Lions first Test XV looks: Kinghorn; Freeman, Jones, Tuipulotu, Lowe; Russell, Gibson-Park; Genge, Sheehan, Stuart/Furlong, Itoje (capt), McCarthy, Beirne/Chessum, van der Flier/Morgan, Conan.
If the side was picked before the side travelled Furlong, Beirne and JVDF get the call; if Farrell is to be swayed by the run to here they are under pressure.