There is a storm heading the Lions’ way this weekend in every sense. The local weather forecasters are predicting rain and the Australian mood is also hardening before Saturday’s second Test. This is not an obvious moment for casual flights of fancy and the intensity of the approaching battle has duly been reflected in Andy Farrell’s no-nonsense team selection.
With series victory potentially just 80 minutes away, Farrell has prioritised physicality and cohesion, to the point where jokes about renaming the side the Irish & British Lions are resurfacing. There would have been 10 Ireland players in this starting XV had Garry Ringrose not withdrawn just before the team announcement, with a couple more in reserve for good measure.
That was almost certainly the plan all along before Ringrose was ruled out of first Test consideration with delayed concussion. The Scotland pairing of Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones performed well in Brisbane, with Tuipulotu supplying a first-half try, but this time Bundee Aki has been handed the 12 jersey with Jones, at the 11th hour, named at outside-centre having initially been set for the chop.
While Tuipulotu is said to be nursing a slightly tight hamstring, Farrell made clear he was leaning towards Aki regardless, despite the Scot’s obvious desire to play against Australia in the city of his birth. It also breaks up the established midfield connection with Scotland’s fly-half Finn Russell but Farrell has seen more than enough of Aki over the years to know what he can bring in terms of gainline presence in major contests. “I honestly believe this is one of the biggest, if not the biggest game, we have all been involved in,” Farrell said.
If there is a sense of the head coach plumping for individuals in whom he has absolute faith under screeching pressure, the same is true in the front row, where the Leinster loosehead Andrew Porter has been promoted and Ellis Genge drops to the bench. The injury absence of Joe McCarthy has reunited Ollie Chessum with his England teammate Maro Itoje in the second row but the presence of James Ryan and Ronan Kelleher on the bench means Leinster still have nine representatives in the matchday 23.
The Irish contingent is still not quite up there with the record-equalling 10 Welsh players who started the third Lions Test against the Wallabies in 2013, when the whole of Ireland was up in arms at the non-selection of their talisman, Brian O’Driscoll. Warren Gatland defended that choice on the straightforward basis that Jonathan Davies was in better form and Farrell, similarly, says this week’s calls are strictly on merit.
Melbourne Cricket Ground, Saturday 26 July, 8pm AEST/11am BST
Australia Wright; Jorgensen, Suaalii, Ikitau, Potter; Lynagh, Gordon; Slipper, Porecki, Alaalatoa, Frost, Skelton, Valetini, McReight, Wilson. Replacements Pollard, Bell, Robertson, Williams, Gleeson, Tizzano, McDermott, Donaldson.
British & Irish Lions Keenan; Freeman, Jones, Aki, Lowe; Russell, Gibson-Park; Porter, Sheehan, Furlong, Itoje, Chessum, Beirne, Curry, Conan. Replacements Kelleher, Genge, Stuart, Ryan, Morgan, Mitchell, Farrell, Kinghorn.
Referee Andrea Piardi (It)
He also knows exactly what to expect from his son Owen, back among the replacements on the strength of one and a half games on tour. Again it feels as if Farrell Sr is factoring in the scale of the occasion in the cavernous Melbourne Cricket Ground and is surrounding himself with reassuring familiarity. “We have put ourselves in a good position after the first Test but we know there will be a massive reaction from this Wallaby team,” the head coach said.
In this instance that means disappointment for Ben Earl and Marcus Smith, both now outside the matchday squad, but it has at least answered the heartfelt prayers of the small Welsh media contingent on tour, who have been waiting for Jac Morgan to give them something to write home about.
The persevering flanker has deserved his inclusion and, alongside the fit-again Blair Kinghorn and Farrell Jr, the over-arching message is clear enough. Farrell Sr freely acknowledges the Lions will need to improve on their second half in Brisbane, notwithstanding how high the Wallabies raise the bar. “We know we will have to be a lot better than last week,” he said. “We thoroughly believe we’re way better than what we showed and we’ve got another chance to prove that.”
While the return of Will Skelton and Rob Valetini to the Wallaby squad gives the hosts an extra physical dimension, Farrell believes his side’s destiny remains firmly in their own hands. “Will, with his size and strength, presents different challenges to your traditional lock. It’s obvious what they’re going to bring. But the focus will be on us. We don’t want to get too distracted by what they may or may not do.”
There is no ducking the magnitude of the contest, with Rugby Australia hoping for a record-breaking attendance of about 90,000, but Farrell believes it will be the nuts and bolts of Test rugby, particularly with a slippery ball, that matter most. “Doing things properly is what we have talked about all week – and the expectation that has to happen the majority of the time. We are all human and realise it is not going to be perfect all of the time … but staying on it as much as we can will give us a better chance of getting what we want.
“No other Lions have done back-to-back victories in tours of the same country. Due to the good work of the 2013 touring party we have the privilege of being in a position to try and accomplish that.”
