After a defeat to Argentina in Dublin, the British and Irish Lions have travelled down under to get their tour started. Their first opponent is the Western Force who finished 9th in Super Rugby Pacific this year. They were the lowest-finishing Australian team in Super Rugby but still provide a significant test. The game will kick off at 11AM GMT on Sky Sports.
Team news
British and Irish Lions
1.Pierre Schoeman 2.Dan Sheehan(C) 3.Tadhg Furlong 4.Scott Cummings 5.Joe McCarthy
6.Tadhg Beirne 7.Josh Van der Flier 8.Henry Pollock 9.Tomos Williams 10.Finn Russell
11.James Lowe 12.Sione Tuipulotu 13.Gary Ringrose 14.Mack Hansen 15.Elliot Daly
16.Ronan Kelleher 17.Andrew Porter 18.Will Stuart 19.Ollie Chessum
20.Jack Conan 21.Alex Mitchell 22.Huw Jones 23.Marcus Smith
Western Force
1.Tom Robertson 2.Brandon Paenga-Amosa 3.Ollie Hoskins 4.Sam Carter 5.Darcy Swain
6.Will Harris 7.Nick Champion De Crespigny 8.Vaiolini Ekuasi 9.Nic White 10.Alex Harford
11.Dylan Pietsch 12.Hamish Stewart 13.Matt Proctor 14.Mac Grealy 15.Ben Donaldson
16.Nic Dolly 17.Marley Pearce 18.Tiaan Tauakipulu 19.Lopeti Faifua
20.Reed Prinsep 21.Henry Robertson 22.Max Burey 23.Bayley Kuenzie
The Lions kick off their tour in Australia with a very different team compared to the one that lost to Argentina. Those who played in finals for their clubs have come into the team giving it a Scottish and Irish feel than last time. In the front row, Furlong and SHeehan start alongside Pierre Schoeman. Sheehan has been made captain which shows just how much faith has been place in him by ANdy Farrell given that Beirne and Tuipuloto are both also in this side. There is a complete change in the second row with Beirne shifting to blindside flanker and Itoje being rested. Cummings starts next to McCarthy in their place with Chessum on the bench. The final forward is Henry Pollock who is being given a bigger chance to get involved after starting on the bench last week. Jack Conan will make his first appearance on this tour when he joins the game from the bench.
The half-back duo will bring a tantalising, attacking approach to this game - both WIlliams and Russell are known for their play-making flair so their combination will be fascinating to watch. If they click, this will be a devastating attack. It's also a big thing to watch due to how tight the competition for the scrum-half position seems to be. Gibson-Park is the obvious favourite but he is injured and the players vying for his spot are both good enough to go ahead of him in the pecking order. Despite losing to Argentina, both WIlliams and Mitchell had good games so, with their positions swapped, both will have the chance to prove themselves once again. In midfield, Farrell has gone with a more traditional type of combination; Tuipulotu will go back to being the bulldozer with surprising skill and Ringrose will come in to be the attacking outside centre who thrives in space. Huw Jones is on the bench in this one so he'll likely be playing next to Tuipulotu at some point but it is interesting that through two games the centres are yet to start in their more familiar partnerships. It looks like Farrell wants to create a level of familiarity between all of them so that he can select his top two without having to factor in combinations too much which is a good strategy. The back three has been completely changed with Ireland's wingers starting and Elliot Daly coming in to play fullback instead of Marcus Smith who drops to the bench. This back line has plenty of experience and comes with plenty of creativity and kicking power but does lack pace. Given that they are facing Dylan Pietsch, who is notoriously rapid, this is a good test to see if that is a genuine liability.
On the bench, Ronan Kelleher starts ahead of Cowan-Dickie who had a tricky game last Friday. Jack Conan will want to make an impact given that he will be the third player to start at 8 this summer despite being the only specialist 8 in the entire squad. Marcus Smith is on the bench which could be the perfect position for him given his game-changing ability and versatility. He'll be wanting a shot at fly-half but may have to be patient on that front.
As for the Western Force, they have several notable threats across the pitch. In the second row, Darcy Swain has been the most disruptive line-out presence in all of Super Rugby which could be a nightmare for a team that is still gelling together at the set piece. There has been a change at hooker but the Lions' line-out was a vulnerability against Argentina who don't have the same tools as the Force to disrupt that set piece. There is a familiar, and not particularly popular, face at scrum-half in the form of Nic White who will bring plenty of experience to his side throughout the game. He'll be ready to get under the skin of the Lions players if things get tight and could derail the game if the visitors aren't careful. As I mentioned previously, Pietsch has burning pace and will always be a threat on the wing but it's his back-three teammate that I think is the most important name. Ben Donaldson is in contention to start at fly-half for the Wallabies in the test matches this summer but starts at fullback this weekend. He is an excellent athlete who brings stability to his team and can dictate in the kicking game. The Lions have the tools to counter that but it is by no means a guarantee.
Overall, this game should end in a decent win for the Lions but the Force are a well-drilled team with more experience together so nothing can be taken for granted.
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