The Lions have slammed controversial Irish pundit Neil Francis over an offensive comment he made about fly-half Marcus Smith.
Speaking on the Independent.ie's Left Wing podcast, former Ireland international Francis described late call-up Smith, who was born in the Philippines to a British father and a Filipina mother, as possessing an "Oompa Loompa tan".
The comment has since been edited out of the podcast, but not before it was widely circulated on social media.
Both the Lions and Smith's club, Harlequins, have quickly moved to express their disgust with Francis' remarks.
"We find the remarks offensive and have written to the Independent to express our deep dissatisfaction," said a Lions spokesperson.
A statement from Smith's club read: “Harlequins is disgusted by offensive comments made by an Independent.ie columnist regarding Harlequins fly-half Marcus Smith and await a reply regarding the matter.”
This isn't the first time Francis has caused controversy with his comments.
In 2018, the Press Ombudsman ruled that Francis was being “provocative” but not racist when he described the French as “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” in a column on the Irish Independent’s website.
For the latest rugby updates sent straight to your inbox, you can sign up to our Lions ROAR or Welsh rugby newsletters.
