Ben Youngs pulls out of Lions squad for family reasons

Leicester and England scrum-half Ben Youngs has pulled out of the British and Irish Lions squad for family reasons.

The Tigers announced on their website that the wife of Youngs' brother Tom, who is also a Leicester player, is suffering from terminal cancer, prompting the 27-year-old to withdraw from Warren Gatland's team for the upcoming tour of New Zealand.

"We are a very close family and, as I am sure everyone can respect, time is now precious together," Ben Youngs said.

"The most important thing for me at this difficult time is to be able to offer as much support as I can to Tom and his family in the remaining time we all have together."