Andy Farrell names a record 15 Irish players in Lions touring squad

TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: British & Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell has named his side for the Tour to Australia. Pic: Ben McShane/Sportsfile

Andy Farrell has included 15 Irish players - but no Sam Prendergast, Jack Crowley or Robbie Henshaw - in his 2025 British and Irish Lions squad that will tour Australia and take on Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies in three Tests this summer.

That number beats by one the previous record for Irish players named on a Lions squad. There were 14 names back in 2009 but four played no part due to injury and suspension while one not named was drafted in mid-tour.

The head coach has also, as expected, named England’s Maro Itoje as his captain in a long drawn-out announcement ‘show’ held at the 02 in London where somewhere in the region of 1,500 punters paid to take it all in live.

Itoje, who was only named England’s on-field leader in January, had emerged as the frontrunner in recent months. That candidacy looked rock solid as soon as news arose that Caelan Doris had suffered a serious shoulder injury with Leinster last weekend.

“This is a great honour for Maro, his family and everyone who has supported him throughout his career from Saracens to England - and on to The Lions in 2017 and 2021,” said Farrell in London.

“As a two-time tourist, Maro fully understands what The Lions is all about and also the role of the captain in helping the group achieve its goal of winning a Test Series this summer.” Though Doris, who is due to have a procedure to determine the seriousness of the problem this week, misses out as a result, there was good news for Jame Ryan who is currently injured but found himself included with 14 of his Ireland teammates.

Other choices of note are the trio of Finn Russell, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith as out-halves with the last of those able to play a role as an auxiliary full-back if required. Elliot Daly of England is another utility option in that respect.

The biggest cheer of the day came when the name of Henry Pollock was revealed. The young Northampton Saints flanker was superb for his club when they upset Leinster in last Saturday’s Champions Cup semi-final.

Maybe the most talked-about absentee is the coach’s son Owen Farrell whose experience was viewed as a strong playing card despite some average form and injuries in France where he plays for Racing 92.

Some of the other fancied names to be omitted included Jamie George, Tauleupe Faletau, Jack Willis, George Ford and Darcy Graham.

More to follow… 

British and Irish Lions squad:

Forwards: Tadhg Beirne (Ireland/Munster), Ollie Chessum (England/Leicester), Jack Conan (Ireland/Leinster), Luke Cowan-Dickie (England/Sale), Scott Cummings (Scotland/Glasgow), Tom Curry (England/Sale), Ben Earl (England/Saracens), Zander Fagerson (Scotland/Glasgow), Tadhg Furlong (Ireland/Leinster), Ellis Genge (England/Bristol), Maro Itoje (England/Saracens, captain), Rónan Kelleher (Ireland/Leinster), Joe McCarthy (Ireland/Leinster), Jac Morgan (Wales/Ospreys), Henry Pollock (England/Northampton), Andrew Porter (Ireland/Leinster), James Ryan (Ireland/Leinster), Pierre Schoeman (Scotland/Edinburgh), Dan Sheehan (Ireland/Leinster), Will Stuart (England/Bath).

Backs: Bundee Aki (Ireland/Connacht), Elliot Daly (England/Saracens), Tommy Freeman (England/Northampton), Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland/Leinster), Mack Hansen (Ireland/Connacht), Huw Jones (Scotland/Glasgow), Hugo Keenan (Ireland/Leinster), Blair Kinghorn (Scotland/Toulouse), James Lowe (Ireland/Leinster), Alex Mitchell (England/Northampton), Garry Ringrose (Ireland/Leinster), Finn Russell (Scotland/Bath), Fin Smith (England/Northampton), Marcus Smith (England/Harlequins), Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland/Glasgow), Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland/Edinburgh), Tomos Williams (Wales/Gloucester).