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Lions hit with double injury headache with Irish duo doubts as they land in Australia - but calm Andy Farrell looks to play down concerns

Lions hit with double injury headache with Irish duo doubts as they land in Australia - but calm Andy Farrell looks to play down concerns

Daily Mail​4 hours ago

Irish duo Hugo Keenan and Jamison Gibson-Park are injury doubts for the Lions' opening tour fixture against the Western Force on Saturday.
The Lions touched down in Australia on Sunday night, with head coach Andy Farrell attempting to play down the fitness concerns.
Scrum-half Gibson-Park tweaked his glute in the URC semi-final two weeks ago and his Leinster team-mate Keenan suffered a calf strain in May. 'We'll see how a few of the lads pull up, but there's nothing too serious at this minute,' said Farrell.
'They're fine. They wouldn't be here otherwise. When you go to any type of match, you need at least 30 players to be able to cover. We're good as far as that's concerned. That's all that matters.'
Asked if the feeling of disappointment from Friday night's surprise defeat by Argentina had been felt throughout the flight, Farrell added: 'No, we're here to build for what's going to be a fantastic Test series.
'We want to play some good rugby along the way.
'We'll find out more about each other as we keep on going. Of course we'll analyse what went on and why, but that's all part of the journey - to understand where we need to go next.'
The Lions were greeted by supporters at Perth Airport, where Henry Pollock arrived carrying BIL the lion teddy as part of his duties as the squad's youngest player.

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