SO, just under a week to go before the Lions kick off their hugely anticipated tour of Australia.
Injuries and controversial non-selections cloud the Wallabies hopes, and we haven’t even got to the first match yet.
Both Robbie Deans and Warren Gatland will be breathing a huge sigh of relief as another round of tough Super 15 and European Finals games were completed with more bruises than breaks. But injuries have mounted over the last few of weeks; most worryingly so for Australia.
On the growing hobbling list for the Aussies is winger Digby Ioane, out with a knee injury and struggling for the first Test. George Smith is also doubtful with a knee injury meaning that the highly promising Michael Hooper will be a shoe-in for the first Test. He’s got big shoes to fill given that both Smith and Pocock are on the sidelines. Add in the chest concerns of James O’Connor and the hammering he took from the Auckland Blues a few weeks back, plus the forearm niggle for Tatafu Polota-Nau, and Deans will be praying that no-one else succumbs.
Indeed, Deans is already walking a tight rope by excluding Quade Cooper from the squad announced last week. Problems with Cooper’s defense were mentioned but one wonders whether he has truly forgiven the controversial Queenslander for his ‘toxic’ spray of the Wallaby environment.
If the Lions think that they are going to waltz through this series though, they will be on dangerous ground. The Waratahs, Reds and Brumbies are all in contention for the Super 15 Finals and even the Rebels and the Force are claiming important wins against strong opposition. The Australian players are on form, match fit and raring to go.
By the time this series is over, Deans will either be lauded as a messiah or paraded as a pariah.
He has what he wanted in terms of a strong showing in the Super 15 from the Australian franchises but the squad has its controversial selections; or non-selections, depending how you look at.
There is a low turn-out of Brumbies despite the Canberra outfit flirting near the top of the Super 15 table all year. There is no Jesse Mogg or Matt Toomua, who have both been stand-outs for their team and with bad boys Quade Cooper and Kurtley Beale almost certain not to be involved, fans will be asking whether Deans has got it right.
All is not rosy in the Lions camp either. England hooker Dylan Hartley is wishing he had never muttered the ‘F’ word to referee Wayne Barnes. He is now out of the tour with a whopping 11 week ban. There are continuing injury concerns around the legendary Brian O’Driscoll who just about got through Leinster’s win over Ulster in the Pro12 Final with a back problem. Sean O’Brien, the tough as teak Leinsterman is also struggling.
A brutal weekend’s worth of European Finals action will mean that over a dozen players will arrive battered and bruised into the Lions camp as they set off for Hong Kong for an encounter with the Barbarians. Expectations will be high and the pressure is on for Warren Gatland and his men to lay down a marker to the Wallabies.
For British rugby fans and players alike, the Lions are the pinnacle. The four countries lay down their centuries-old rivalry to come together as one to take on the might of the southern hemisphere. It is a special rugby legacy and this should be the start of a very special few weeks of rugby coming up.
IMAGE: Australian Wallabies coach Robbie Deans. (AAP Image/Paul Miller)
[ Source: Australian Times ]