Lions team to play South Africa: Third confirmed test changes
Rugby NewsTuesday, 03 August 2021 at 12:00
Lions team to play South Africa: Warren Gatland has made numerous changes to his starting team for the third test against the Springboks.
The defeat sees the Castle Lager Lions Series level at 1-1 going into this weekend’s final Test match.
“The matchday 23 have an incredibly special opportunity in front of them – to seal a Lions Series victory in South Africa,” said Gatland.
“It doesn’t get much bigger than this and we’re excited by the challenge that faces us on Saturday.
“We’ve no excuses from last week, the Springboks put us under pressure in the second half and deserved the win. We have to be much better than that second half performance, and I believe we will be.”
Saturday’s clash against the reigning World Champions is the final Test match in the 2021 Castle Lager Lions Series and will be shown live and exclusively on Sky Sports.
EDITORS PICKS:
- RATINGS: The Lions best and worst players from the last three tours
- Three players Warren Gatland should have picked for the Lions
- Dan Carter and Jonny Wilkinson rank their top five fly-halves
- New angle of Faf de Klerk tackle on Conor Murray is damning
Lions team to play South Africa:
SOUTH AFRICA v THE BRITISH & IRISH LIONS
15. Liam Williams (Scarlets, Wales) #833
14. Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby, Wales) #836
13. Robbie Henshaw (Leinster Rugby, Ireland) #824
12. Bundee Aki (Connacht Rugby, Ireland) #837
11. Duhan van der Merwe (Worcester Warriors, Scotland) #841
10. Dan Biggar (Northampton Saints, Wales) #821
9. Ali Price (Glasgow Warriors, Scotland) #843
1. Wyn Jones (Scarlets, Wales) #842
2. Ken Owens (Scarlets, Wales) #829
3. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster Rugby, Ireland) #818
4. Maro Itoje (Saracens, England) #825
5. Alun Wyn Jones – captain (Ospreys, Wales) #761
6. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, England) #826
7. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, England) #853
8. Jack Conan (Leinster Rugby, Ireland) #839
Replacements:
16. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, England) #851
17. Mako Vunipola (Saracens, England) #787
18. *Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears, England) #814 – subject to outcome of disciplinary hearing.
19. Adam Beard (Ospreys, Wales) #852
20. Sam Simmonds (Exeter Chiefs, England) #849
21. Conor Murray (Munster Rugby, Ireland) #790
22. Finn Russell (Racing 92, Scotland) #835
23. Elliot Daly (Saracens, England) #822
Three players Warren Gatland should have picked for the Lions
#1. Ellis Genge (England)
- Position: Loosehead-prop
- Age: 26
- Caps: 29
Capped 27 times by England, the loosehead is highly rated and was in barnstorming form for the Tigers towards the end of last season. Right now, the 'baby rhino' would walk into the team ahead of Mako Vunipola, Rory Sutherland and Wyn Jones.
He revealed he had given himself a pep talk after his Lions snub, quoted by Planet Rugby as saying: "It was disappointing not to be selected for the Lions so I had a word with myself. I accepted that my performances had probably not been good enough.
"It’s not often you get over the whitewash and my last five tries have come from a total of 10 metres."
#2. Johnny Sexton (Ireland)
- Position: Fly-half
- Age: 36
- Caps: 105
None of the original three fly-halves selected by Gatland have particularly impressed, making the decision to leave the leading playmaker from the last two tours even more baffling.
He played all 80 minutes of the final three games of the Six Nations, was excellent in all three games and kicked 25 from his 26 attempts on goal. Even aged 36, Sexton looked to have nailed down a spot on his third Lions tour.
Even All Blacks legend Dan Carter was baffled by the decision, and we believe if Gatland had his time again he'd not leave Sexton at home twiddling his thumbs.
He's a test match animal who knows how to control a game, which is something the Lions could do with just about now.
#3. Jack Nowell (England)
- Position: Winger/Fullback
- Age: 28
- Caps: 44
A toe ligament injury has meant Nowell has been limited to a handful of minutes this year for Exeter, which left him too little time to make a statement to the selectors.
However, seeing Rob Baxter pick him ahead of Stuart Hogg for the Premiership final spoke volumes about the Scotsman's form heading into the tour.
A reliable lieutenant for Gatland in 2017, Nowell's versatility would have been very useful in a squad disrupted by Covid more than once..
He could have easily found himself in the test XV at fullback or on the wing due to his defensive capabilities and, crucially, his reliability under the high ball.
TRENDING
LATEST NEWS
LATEST COMMENTS
Loading