Share
12th April 2021
01:28pm BST
"If you'd have said to me at the start of the tournament, when Ireland had lost two games, that everyone would be saying Murray and Sexton should be your 9 and 10, you'd have thought they were mad. But then they played an unbelievable game against England and everyone goes, 'Well, it's got to be Sexton and Murray."When it came to his Lions XV, though, there were several changes to the team our House of Rugby crew selected. There was not much room for Irish players in Care's team, either. On the latest House of Rugby Ireland episode [LISTEN from 8:30 below], Fergus McFadden, Michelle Claffey and Ian Madigan touched on a few Irish players that boosted their Lions chances at the weekend. [caption id="attachment_117440" align="aligncenter" width="647"]
Danny Care has not featured for England this year but has been tipped, in some quarters, as a potential Lion. (Credit: Getty Images)[/caption]
After praising Leinster and Ireland hooker Rónan Kelleher for getting the better of Exeter Chiefs' Luke Cowan-Dickie - a potential Lions rival - McFadden focused on his case for the South Africa tour, as well as Hugo Keenan's.
"Granted, Hugo missed an early tackle but he completely outplayed Stuart Hogg. He drew him in for James Lowe's try and, for Jordan's first try, Stuart Hogg probably needs to make that tackle. I think Hugo Keenan is putting himself in a strong position to be a bolter for the Lions.""It strikes me," says Madigan, "when I'm watching him play that I don't think teams realise how quick Hugo is. He's deceptively quick... for that second try, Hogg is unsure if his winger is going to get him. It just puts him in two minds... Hogg has to check for a split second and then, at the last moment, Hugo delivers the pass." [caption id="attachment_218799" align="aligncenter" width="2048"]
Will Connors and Hugo Keenan after their Ireland debuts against Italy. (Credit: Sportsfile)[/caption]
While Leinster and Ireland fans will endorse that sort of talk, there is no room for Kelleher, Keenan, or many Irish players, in Care's team selection.
Like just about every Lions XV we have seen, Tadhg Furlong is there at tighthead, in a front row with Jamie George and Care's Harlequins teammate Joe Marler.
All told, there are seven English players in the scrumhalf's selection, five from Wales, two Irish and Stuart Hogg as Scotland's sole representative. He commented:
"At 9 and 10, I've gone for Conor Murray and Owen Farrell. I think those two, come the summer, will be the two they go to."All team selections have a dash of subjectivity in there, but it is surprising, all the same, to see Robbie Henshaw - a man Brian O'Driscoll rates as the form centre, with Gael Fickou, in Europe - omitted here.
Explore more on these topics:
