WHILE WARREN GATLAND understands how motivated his players will be to bounce back against the All Blacks in the second Test, it seems unlikely that the entire starting XV will survive after the first Test defeat in Auckland.
Changes are on the cards and speaking after the Lions had arrived in Wellington ahead of Tuesday’s clash with the Hurricanes and the second Test in the capital city, Gatland name-checked Maro Itoje and Sam Warburton as two possible inclusions this weekend.
Sam Warburton could be set for a return to the Lions' XV. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
Both players came off the bench in the first Test and Gatland stated his approval of their impact on the game.
“We might have to shake it up a little bit,” said Gatland when asked how the Lions would approach selection for the second Test.
“I think someone like Maro Itoje made an impact coming off the bench and was very physical. I thought Sam Warburton was excellent as well at the breakdown when he came on.”
Gatland also pointed out that players involved against the Hurricanes on Tuesday could force their way into the Test 23, with Liam Williams and Elliot Daly having achieved as much with impressive performances against the Chiefs last week.
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“We’re not set in stone at the moment,” said Gatland. “We know that there’s potentially a couple of changes that we need to make and we want to see how the team performs on Tuesday night, and those guys are given the opportunity to perform on Tuesday night.
“That’s a big game for them, but we felt that we may need to make a couple of changes up front and give some other players a chance to impress in the backline as well.”
The obvious way to introduce the dynamic Itoje into the starting XV would be as a direct replacement for Alun Wyn Jones, who struggled at times against the All Blacks on Saturday.
However, the inclusion of George Kruis on the bench for Tuesday night suggests that his starting position is not 100% safe either, with Courtney Lawes and Iain Henderson offering further options in the second row.
Itoje was good off the bench for the Lions. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
While Itoje is not recognised as a frontline lineout caller – he led England’s set-piece against Ireland in the Six Nations this year – Gatland says the Saracens man has been calling lineouts in training and it wouldn’t be a huge issue.
In the back row, the possible introduction of Warburton could mean that first Test captain Peter O’Mahony would miss out, the Welshman having replaced the Munster captain in the second half at Eden Park.
Gatland could team Warburton up with Sean O’Brien and Taulupe Faletau in the back row as he seeks a greater edge at the breakdown, after the All Blacks dominated that area of the first Test.
“They were pretty brutal in that breakdown area and we need to match fire with fire if we’re going to do well on Saturday night,” said Gatland.
The Lions’ back three showed their class on the counter attack against the All Blacks, although Gatland rated fullback Liam Williams as “mixed” after he produced a handful of errors in the second half.
The centre pairing of Ben Te’o and Jonathan Davies was strong for the Lions, but out-half Owen Farrell looked to be short of his very best in the 10 shirt and Johnny Sexton remains an option there.
Gatland and his coaching staff have big calls to make across the park, but they are cognisant of the fact that if they back the players involved in the first Test defeat, they could well get a huge response for showing that faith.
“Look, there might be one or two changes in terms of that,” said Gatland.
Gatland has some huge calls to make. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
“You always want, as a player, if you felt things haven’t gone as well physically as you would have liked in terms of maybe the opposition’s got the better of you, you want a chance to rectify that the following week and improve things.
“We’ve got to get the balance of those, if we do make changes, of giving players the opportunity and those who did play in the first Test to potentially redeem themselves.”
It will be a fascinating selection from the Lions and it could make or break this Test series.
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Changes on the cards as Lions set to 'shake it up' with selection
Murray Kinsella reports from Wellington
WHILE WARREN GATLAND understands how motivated his players will be to bounce back against the All Blacks in the second Test, it seems unlikely that the entire starting XV will survive after the first Test defeat in Auckland.
Changes are on the cards and speaking after the Lions had arrived in Wellington ahead of Tuesday’s clash with the Hurricanes and the second Test in the capital city, Gatland name-checked Maro Itoje and Sam Warburton as two possible inclusions this weekend.
Both players came off the bench in the first Test and Gatland stated his approval of their impact on the game.
“We might have to shake it up a little bit,” said Gatland when asked how the Lions would approach selection for the second Test.
“I think someone like Maro Itoje made an impact coming off the bench and was very physical. I thought Sam Warburton was excellent as well at the breakdown when he came on.”
Gatland also pointed out that players involved against the Hurricanes on Tuesday could force their way into the Test 23, with Liam Williams and Elliot Daly having achieved as much with impressive performances against the Chiefs last week.
“We’re not set in stone at the moment,” said Gatland. “We know that there’s potentially a couple of changes that we need to make and we want to see how the team performs on Tuesday night, and those guys are given the opportunity to perform on Tuesday night.
“That’s a big game for them, but we felt that we may need to make a couple of changes up front and give some other players a chance to impress in the backline as well.”
The obvious way to introduce the dynamic Itoje into the starting XV would be as a direct replacement for Alun Wyn Jones, who struggled at times against the All Blacks on Saturday.
However, the inclusion of George Kruis on the bench for Tuesday night suggests that his starting position is not 100% safe either, with Courtney Lawes and Iain Henderson offering further options in the second row.
While Itoje is not recognised as a frontline lineout caller – he led England’s set-piece against Ireland in the Six Nations this year – Gatland says the Saracens man has been calling lineouts in training and it wouldn’t be a huge issue.
In the back row, the possible introduction of Warburton could mean that first Test captain Peter O’Mahony would miss out, the Welshman having replaced the Munster captain in the second half at Eden Park.
Gatland could team Warburton up with Sean O’Brien and Taulupe Faletau in the back row as he seeks a greater edge at the breakdown, after the All Blacks dominated that area of the first Test.
“They were pretty brutal in that breakdown area and we need to match fire with fire if we’re going to do well on Saturday night,” said Gatland.
The Lions’ back three showed their class on the counter attack against the All Blacks, although Gatland rated fullback Liam Williams as “mixed” after he produced a handful of errors in the second half.
The centre pairing of Ben Te’o and Jonathan Davies was strong for the Lions, but out-half Owen Farrell looked to be short of his very best in the 10 shirt and Johnny Sexton remains an option there.
Gatland and his coaching staff have big calls to make across the park, but they are cognisant of the fact that if they back the players involved in the first Test defeat, they could well get a huge response for showing that faith.
“Look, there might be one or two changes in terms of that,” said Gatland.
“You always want, as a player, if you felt things haven’t gone as well physically as you would have liked in terms of maybe the opposition’s got the better of you, you want a chance to rectify that the following week and improve things.
“We’ve got to get the balance of those, if we do make changes, of giving players the opportunity and those who did play in the first Test to potentially redeem themselves.”
It will be a fascinating selection from the Lions and it could make or break this Test series.
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