JOHNNY SEXTON WILL have the first shot in the Lions’ 10 shirt on Saturday as Warren Gatland’s side get their tour underway against the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians, but this contest is a long way from being decided.
Farrell and Sexton will compete for the Lions' 10 shirt.
With the Irish out-half having the greatest need for game time, he is first to line out in the pivotal position, with Owen Farrell on the bench for this weekend and Welshman Dan Biggar forced to wait until next week to make his first appearance.
Much of the pre-tour talk had been about the possibility of Sexton and Farrell playing together, with the Saracens playmaker having excelled at 12 for England under Eddie Jones, but while Gatland is not ruling that out, he indicated again that the Lions see out-half as Farrell’s best position.
“We’ll see what happens on the weekend,” said Gatland on Thursday afternoon at QBE Stadium, where the Lions trained. “Owen is on the bench, so he might get some time in the midfield. We know that’s an option for us, him having played in the midfield.
“I, personally, and the other coaches, think he’s a world-class 10.
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“So it’s not just with Sexton and Farrell, you’ve got Biggar as well. There’s some real experience there and knowing the three of them, they’re desperate to play and start in that position.
“It was quite funny last week at the end of the training, I just said I would have a chat to the 10s. Dan was there and Johnny Sexton was there, and Owen was over there and Johnny said, ‘Don’t worry about him, he’s a midfielder!’
“There’s already a bit of banter about and the players are very aware of the competition in that position, so they’ll get a chance, the three of them, to start. Johnny starts on Saturday and then the other two will start the next two games.”
Biggar is another option at 10 for the Lions. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
The sense right now is that Farrell’s recent form for Saracens may have nudged him ahead of Sexton, although the Leinster man has the experience of winning the 2013 tour as the starting out-half in his favour.
That said, a tour four years ago doesn’t hold huge relevance to right now in New Zealand and current form is likely to be the decisive factor.
“They’re both capable of playing flat to the gain line, which is important,” said Gatland of Sexton and Farrell.
“They’re both great goal kickers with a lot of experience and I think at the moment, not just the two of them but the three of them, they are bringing out the best in each other.
“There’s going to be some real competition. It’s not just their attacking, they’re going to have to be strong defensively too. Their leadership is going to be important as well in terms of their communication and implementing the game plan that we can take the All Blacks on with.”
With Farrell and Biggar to start the next two games against the Blues and the Crusaders, it’s vital for each player to shine in their relatively limited windows of game time.
The battle will roll on over the coming weeks and it’s likely to be the week before the first Tests against the All Blacks before it is clear who has earned the nod as first-choice 10.
Gatland is keeping an open mind about his Test side. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
“Obviously, the Maori game [on 17 June] is pretty important for us, isn’t it?” said Gatland. “That’s a week before the first Test and you might be mirroring reasonably close to your starting 15 for the first Test.”
Sexton is the first cab off the rank at out-half and leading the Lions to a commanding victory in Whangerai on Saturday is vital as he feels the pressure of competing with Biggar and Farrell.
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'Johnny Sexton said, 'Don't worry about him, he's a midfielder!''
Murray Kinsella reports from Auckland
JOHNNY SEXTON WILL have the first shot in the Lions’ 10 shirt on Saturday as Warren Gatland’s side get their tour underway against the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians, but this contest is a long way from being decided.
With the Irish out-half having the greatest need for game time, he is first to line out in the pivotal position, with Owen Farrell on the bench for this weekend and Welshman Dan Biggar forced to wait until next week to make his first appearance.
Much of the pre-tour talk had been about the possibility of Sexton and Farrell playing together, with the Saracens playmaker having excelled at 12 for England under Eddie Jones, but while Gatland is not ruling that out, he indicated again that the Lions see out-half as Farrell’s best position.
“We’ll see what happens on the weekend,” said Gatland on Thursday afternoon at QBE Stadium, where the Lions trained. “Owen is on the bench, so he might get some time in the midfield. We know that’s an option for us, him having played in the midfield.
“I, personally, and the other coaches, think he’s a world-class 10.
“So it’s not just with Sexton and Farrell, you’ve got Biggar as well. There’s some real experience there and knowing the three of them, they’re desperate to play and start in that position.
“It was quite funny last week at the end of the training, I just said I would have a chat to the 10s. Dan was there and Johnny Sexton was there, and Owen was over there and Johnny said, ‘Don’t worry about him, he’s a midfielder!’
“There’s already a bit of banter about and the players are very aware of the competition in that position, so they’ll get a chance, the three of them, to start. Johnny starts on Saturday and then the other two will start the next two games.”
The sense right now is that Farrell’s recent form for Saracens may have nudged him ahead of Sexton, although the Leinster man has the experience of winning the 2013 tour as the starting out-half in his favour.
That said, a tour four years ago doesn’t hold huge relevance to right now in New Zealand and current form is likely to be the decisive factor.
“They’re both capable of playing flat to the gain line, which is important,” said Gatland of Sexton and Farrell.
“They’re both great goal kickers with a lot of experience and I think at the moment, not just the two of them but the three of them, they are bringing out the best in each other.
“There’s going to be some real competition. It’s not just their attacking, they’re going to have to be strong defensively too. Their leadership is going to be important as well in terms of their communication and implementing the game plan that we can take the All Blacks on with.”
With Farrell and Biggar to start the next two games against the Blues and the Crusaders, it’s vital for each player to shine in their relatively limited windows of game time.
The battle will roll on over the coming weeks and it’s likely to be the week before the first Tests against the All Blacks before it is clear who has earned the nod as first-choice 10.
“Obviously, the Maori game [on 17 June] is pretty important for us, isn’t it?” said Gatland. “That’s a week before the first Test and you might be mirroring reasonably close to your starting 15 for the first Test.”
Sexton is the first cab off the rank at out-half and leading the Lions to a commanding victory in Whangerai on Saturday is vital as he feels the pressure of competing with Biggar and Farrell.
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