British & Irish Lions could face the All Blacks in series decider next year
Rugby NewsTuesday, 07 April 2020 at 17:06
Warren Gatland has revealed the British and Irish Lions could play a £5million one-off clash against the All Blacks in 2021.
The match would decide the drawn 2017 series' and pour funds back into rugby after coronavirus losses.
'I've spoken to Mark Robinson (New Zealand CEO) about a warm-up game for the Lions and he was potentially talking about the New Zealand Maoris as a game,' Gatland told .
'But is it something that the All Blacks go up there for a decider at the end of June before we go off to South Africa?
'Potentially it's an opportunity to make four or five million pounds from a game like that and put some money back into the coffers, that we're going to need.'
Sir Ian McGeechan picks seven Englishmen in his Lions 2021 XV
Rugby legend Sir Ian McGeechan has picked his best British & Irish Lions XV for their 2021 tour of South Africa.
Picking his team for the BBC, he's selected seven England stars in his selection.
15: Stuart Hogg (Scotland)
14: Anthony Watson (England)
"I'd definitely have Watson. He's great under the high ball, has unbelievable feet and would be outstanding on hard South African grounds."
13: Jonathan Davies (Wales)
12: Manu Tuilagi (England)
"At 12, I have to go with Manu. There's such power there. And you'll need that."
11: Liam Williams (Wales)
10: Owen Farrell (England)
9: Gareth Davies (Wales)
1: Rory Sutherland (Scotland)
"On form, I have to go with Sutherland. He's been absolutely brilliant. He's not just a good technical rugby player, he can play, he can run, he makes an impact. His story is an incredible one. I'd love to see him kick on."
2: Jamie George (England)
" Fantastic consistency, tough, good set-piece performer, just a very solid character. He will take some shifting."
3: Tadhg Furlong (Ireland)
"He's not had a brilliant season but he's such a good player and in these circumstances you would get the best out of him. He'd rise to the challenge. He's done it before."
4: Maro Itoje (England)
""Itoje is definitely one of them and I'd bracket him as a possible captain. He's a hell of a competitor. When you watch him, he's into everything. He reads things so well, he's niggling, he leads by example. He's a really intelligent lad and a really intelligent rugby player."
5: James Ryan (Ireland)
6: Jamie Ritchie (Scotland)
" He's tough, mobile, into everything. He's a carrier, a leader, he's improving game on game and I think he could be outstanding in a Lions jersey."
7: Tom Curry (England)
"A very clever player, a relentless guy with a huge engine. He'd come into his own in a Lions environment," he says.
8: Billy Vunipola (England)
TRENDING
LATEST NEWS
LATEST COMMENTS
Loading
