SYDNEY :British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell said places in the test side for the series against Australia were still up for grabs despite his selection of what looked close to a first-choice team to play the ACT Brumbies on Wednesday.
The match against the strongest of Australia’s Super Rugby teams comes 10 days before the first test against the Wallabies and has long been earmarked as the moment when Farrell would show his hand.
“I understand the speculation but the truth of the matter is we’ve got a good side that’s going to take the field on Wednesday,” he told reporters in Canberra on Monday.
“I’ll tell you guys what I said to the team this morning, that there’s always going to be speculation, but it’s up to people to put the best foot forward for a test spot.
“Players can play themselves in and play themselves out at the same time, but at the same time, what we’re looking for is a cohesive team performance and that’s at the forefront of what we’re trying to achieve.”
Lock Maro Itoje returns as skipper after being rested for the unconvincing 21-10 victory over the New South Wales Waratahs at the weekend, as does Scottish flyhalf Finn Russell.
Russell’s compatriot Blair Kinghorn survives from the side that played the Waratahs but will switch from the wing to his more familiar fullback role at Canberra Stadium.
Farrell said on Saturday that his playmaker son Owen, who was called up last week as an injury replacement for Elliot Daly, would not be considered for the Brumbies match.
Young English loose forward Henry Pollock, who was a late withdrawal from the Waratahs game with a calf issue, was named among the replacements.
Australian-born Ireland winger Mack Hansen is also on the bench and gets a chance to play against his former club in his hometown.
“It’s obviously special playing it,” Hansen said. “But this isn’t the one you want to be in for. You want to put your name towards the test. So that’s all I’m focused on for this game.”
Hansen was in the stands when the Brumbies beat the Lions on their last tour of Australia in 2013, part of the history of the fixture that Farrell thought pointed to a tough game for the tourists on Wednesday.
“The last two occasions that we’ve played against the Brumbies has been four points in it, for and against,” he added.
“So we know the challenge ahead of us, and it’s something that we’re looking forward to.”
Team: 15–Blair Kinghorn, 14–Tommy Freeman, 13–Garry Ringrose, 12–Bundee Aki, 11–James Lowe, 10–Finn Russell, 9–Jamison Gibson-Park, 8–Jack Conan, 7–Tom Curry, 6–Ollie Chessum, 5–Joe McCarthy, 4–Maro Itoje (captain), 3–Tadhg Furlong, 2–Dan Sheehan, 1–Ellis Genge.
Replacements: 16–Ronan Kelleher, 17–Andrew Porter, 18–Will Stuart, 19–Josh van der Flier, 20–Henry Pollock, 21–Alex Mitchell, 22–Marcus Smith, 23–Mack Hansen.
