
‘They'll be flying into it' – Captain Dan Sheehan challenges Lions to show Western Force ‘won't be hungrier than us'
DAN SHEEHAN insists the Lions will use their pride in the jersey to match the determination of a Western Force side who are targeting a famous win in Perth.
Captain
2
Dan Sheehan looks on during the British & Irish Lions training session held at Hale School in Perth
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
2
Andy Farrell has named Dan Sheehan Lions captain for the Test against Western Force
Credit: AFP or licensors
Henry Pollock makes his first start after being picked at No 8 while
The Lions know they are being targeted by Super
history
.
But
The debutant, 26, said: 'It's important to know where the opposition's mindset is and how they approach a game that only comes around every 12 years, like it does for the Western Force.
Read More on Dan Sheehan
'I'm sure the Force will be 150 per cent of what they usually are.
'They will be flying into it and that bit of extra hunger can produce some powerful things.
'They would have been eyeing this game up since they probably first stepped into that Western Force change room. It'll mean an awful lot to them.
'But I don't want them to think that they're going to be hungrier than us. We have to demonstrate our own mindset because this will be the first time I will be putting on the
jersey
, along with a few other lads.'
Most read in Rugby Union
The Force is the second game of a tour that began with a 28-24 defeat by
And while matches will soon come thick and fast, chances to impress Lions boss Faz will be limited.
'Cried like a baby didn't ya-' - Watch Andy Farrell embarrass Ireland star over reaction to Lions call-up
Ireland head coach Farrell, however, has cautioned over the danger of players wanting a Test place too much.
The boss said: 'That's desperation and that's what we don't want because desperation leads to people being distorted in the way they go about the game.'
There are two survivors from the side that faced the Pumas in Sione Tuipulotu and Munster's
Leinster ace
The
'It was tough because as the weeks went on we thought we had a fighting chance for getting back for Leinster at the end of the season. But it just wasn't right. As desperate as you are to get on to the pitch, you have a situation where you can't push.
'In some ways you can live with yourself because you're doing everything you can to get out there. When you can't, you can't.'

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
‘It wasn't supposed to be a jibe' – Joe Schmidt clarifies comments about Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipolotu
Debate about Lions' foreign legion rages on ahead of opening Test Rúaidhrí O'Connor in Perth Joe Schmidt insists he did not mean to criticise Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu when he referred to them as 'a Southern Hemisphere centre partnership' when they were selected to play for the Lions against Argentina last week. The issue of nationality has been a major theme in the build up to the tour after Andy Farrell selecting five players who qualify to play for their national teams on residency in Ireland's James Lowe, Jamison Gibson-Park and Bundee Aki and Scotland's Duhan van der Merwe and Pierre Schoeman as well as Australians Sione Tuipulotu and Mack Hansen who have a Scottish grandmother and Irish mother respectively.


RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Tommy O'Brien: 'I don't want to be a one-cap wonder'
All things going to plan, Tommy O'Brien should become a full Ireland international in the next two weeks. It's been a long time coming for the 27-year-old. The fact that it's taken the Blackrock man so long to nail down his place in Leinster's starting XV has been more down to his injury record than any lack of will or ability. Just over six months ago, he made what would have been a bold statement when he said he believed he just needed a run of games to prove to the Irish coaches he was ready to make the step up to Test rugby. He's backed up that talk. At the time, he was priming himself for a return from a hamstring injury which sidelined him for three months. He cruelly picked up the injury in the process of scoring a try in Leinster's opening game of the BKT United Rugby Championship away to Edinburgh, and it was one that ruled him out of the Emerging Ireland tour of South Africa. The Irish coaches showed faith in him by giving him a chance to impress for Ireland A against England A towards the end of February and he impressed enough to be brought into the wider senior squad later in the Guinness Six Nations. His form since then has been as good as any winger in Ireland, starting nine of Leinster's final 13 games of the season, scoring three tries and establishing himself as first choice on the right wing for the province, with a highlight reel of moments in both attack and defence. "I've loved my rugby the last few months," the wing said this week, ahead of Ireland's summer Tests in Tbilisi and Lisbon. "I love just getting a run of games. It's something I haven't really had in my career, getting an extended period of games, and thankfully that tied in with the [URC] trophy. "I guess I've known what I can do in training, but it's obviously behind closed doors so the general public wouldn't see it, but I had a bit of confidence in what I was doing, and the fact you're training in Leinster with such high level players, such international quality players, I took a bit of confidence from that and I felt I just needed to get a chance to get a couple of games under my belt." Despite missing three months with that hamstring injury, the 12 games he played for Leinster this season are the most he's ever logged in a season, with his injury history limiting him to just 31 games in the previous five campaign. If there is a silver lining to O'Brien's (below) injury this season, it's that he's coming into the summer feeling fresh rather than fatigued. "It probably is something that potentially stood to me. I think I played 13 or 14 games this year where some guys would be in the 20s. "It's not something I'd trade, I would rather play the 20-something games, but it's almost as if my season started in February or whenever I started playing games. So I'm enjoying that now and the body's feeling good. "Injuries-wise I guess it was weird, I always would have been able to come back and have full faith - it's probably a credit to all the physios - but I never really felt coming back that I was running at 80% or 75% or whatever. "Once I was back, I felt like I had full confidence in myself to be able to do whatever I felt like I needed to do." Now that he's in the Ireland squad, he's planning to stay there. With 16 Ireland regulars currently away on the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, this summer's squad has an inexperienced feel to it, and O'Brien is one of 12 uncapped players in the squad of 32, which will be captained by Craig Casey and coached by Paul O'Connell. And having got a taste of international rugby for Ireland A in February (below), he believes he's ready for the real thing, either on the wing or at centre. "I definitely don't want to be a one-cap wonder. Hopefully this is the start for me now of being in this squad and pushing for places. "Obviously, there's guys away, Lowey [James Lowe] and Mack [Hansen] are away with the Lions, so there's two wingers there for Ireland, but I want to try stake a claim and make myself a mainstay in this squad and try to push [for a place in future squads]. "Obviously there's this summer tour and then you've November internationals and Six Nations and stuff. "I'm dying to play a game for Ireland, so wherever they play me, I'll happily play. "I think I probably have been viewed more as a winger at the moment, but if it's wing, if it's centre, if it's the 23 role, yeah, I'm happy to play wherever. "It's what you dream of as a kid, getting to represent your country. There's 12 of us in here who haven't done it yet, so fingers crossed now as many of them can get that first cap."


Irish Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Ahern injury worry, Josh Murphy called up to Ireland squad as precaution
Ireland have been left worrying over Tom Ahern's fitness ahead of departure for Georgia and the first of the Ireland summer tour games. The Munster star has been described as having as a hamstring problem, and is being managed. It was serious enough for the IRFU to call in the 'Doc' - Josh Murphy that is, the Connacht player who finished his medical exams in 2021. It is the latest in a series of frustration for Munster fan-favourite Ahern who also missed out on the Ireland A game in Bristol last March through injury. An IRFU statement released this morning read: Connacht's *Josh Murphy* has joined the Ireland squad for training in Dublin today and will remain with the panel prior to Wednesday's departure to Tbilisi. Murphy will provide cover for *Tom Ahern* who is being managed for hamstring tightness." Enniscorthy-born Murphy, 30, was originally with Leinster for whom he made 61 appearances between 2017 and 2022 before a move to Connacht - where he took a year's sabbatical 2023/24 to do his medical internship. The upshot was 18 appearances in 2022/23, 17 as a starter and 21 games in 2024/25, with 17 of those as a starter. The hope is still that Ahern can travel or, at minimum, take a short hop to join the party in Lisbon for the second game against Portugal. Either way, should Ahern or Murphy travel and get capped it will still fit with assistant coach Mikey Prendergast's aspiration to have handed out 12 debuts over the two games. Says Leinster's URC winning star Tommy O'Brien who is probably at the head of the queue when it comes to those dozen and who is seen as a potential Ireland regular next season: " I'm dying to play a game for Ireland, so wherever they play me, I'll happily play. "I think I probably have been viewed more as a winger at the moment, but if it's wing, if it's centre, if it's the 23 role, yeah, I'm happy to play wherever." There is a dozen guys from different provinces who hav experienced different types of seasons but all ready to go. "There's obviously different people, so the Leinster guys would have come just almost straight in from playing, but some of the other guys would have been be champing at the bit, they would have been training away behind the scenes for the last few weeks, so everyone's champing at the bit to get some rugby under the belt. "And then obviously it's what you dream of as a kid, getting to represent your country and as you said, there's 12 of us in here who haven't done it yet and so fingers crossed now as many of them can get that first cap." The first game with Georgia, world ranked no11 and currently one place ahead of Wales, is considered the more difficult of the two tasks. "We obviously know they're a very proud rugby team, unbelievably physical and they have a good few players who play Top 14 rugby, so know some of them from that. That's something that we'll definitely look into, but we know they're a very proud emerging nation." IRELAND SUMMER TOUR SCHEDULESaturday, 5th July: Georgia v Ireland, Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi (kick off 9pm local time, 6pm Irish time);Saturday, 12th July: Portugal v Ireland, Estádio Nacional do Jamor, Lisbon (kick off 7pm local, same Irish time)Ireland Men's Squad – Summer Tour 2025, departing for Tbilisi on Wednesday, 2nd (14): Shayne Bolton (Connacht)*, Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)(captain)(18), Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(24), Nathan Doak (Banbridge/Ulster)*, Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(8), Hugh Gavin (Galwegians/Connacht)*, Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster)(19), Ben Murphy (Clontarf/Connacht)*, Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(10), Jimmy O'Brien (Naas/Leinster)(8), Tommy O'Brien (UCD/Leinster)*, Jamie Osborne (Naas/Leinster)(7), Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)(8), Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster)(38)Forwards (18): Tom Ahern (Shannon/Munster)*, Jack Aungier (Lansdowne/Connacht)*, Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(27), Jack Boyle (UCD/Leinster)(2), Thomas Clarkson (Dublin University/Leinster)(6), Gavin Coombes (Young Munster/Munster)(2), Max Deegan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(2), Cormac Izuchukwu (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(1), Alex Kendellen (UCC/Munster)*, Gus McCarthy (UCD/Leinster)(4), Paddy McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)*, Michael Milne (UCD/Munster)*, Darragh Murray (Buccaneers/Connacht)*, Tom O'Toole (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(16), Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht)(4), Stephen Smyth (Old Wesley/Leinster)*, Tom Stewart (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(2), Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster)(3)