How the Lions team looks for second Test: changes possible in the backline
James Lowe and Hugo Keenan could be two of those to miss out on selection for the second Test between the Lions and Australia. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
One win in the books and with a chance to secure a first Lions series victory in 12 years now just 80 minutes away at the MCG this Saturday, will Andy Farrell stick or twist with his selection from the 27-19 success in Brisbane?
Hugo Keenan had a relatively free run to his Lions Test debut at number 15 once Blair Kinghorn was ruled out with a knee injury sustained 10 days before the series opener. Head coach Farrell said he was hopeful Kinghorn could pass fit to face the First Nations & Pasifika XV at Melbourne's Marvel Stadium on Tuesday and a positive comeback for the Toulouse and Scotland playmaker could put some serious pressure on his Ireland counterpart. Keenan had a mixed performance at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday and will be cursing having his pocket picked by Wallabies wing Max Jorgensen as the pair came down from an aerial battle each with hands on the ball. Jorgensen raced over the line to score. That may work in Kinghorn's favour if he can get back to match readiness this week.
VERDICT: Kinghorn
Tommy Freeman was another member of the back three to have a patchy performance in Brisbane. The England wing had also benefitted from a rival’s injury, to Mack Hansen, and much will depend on the Ireland man getting his foot back to full health if Freeman is to hang onto his place in the starting backline. The latest update from the Lions is that the Connacht star is progressing well and having his training load increased in the coming days.
Hansen is a firm favourite of Farrell's and such an important link in the way Ireland attack, roaming off his wing in search of involvements. Freeman can do that too and he and Hansen have been the Lions' best performing wings on the tour but there may be a way to start them both...
Left wing James Lowe has not been at his most powerful best on this Australian tour and the first Test saw his finishing prowess under scrutiny once again, held up over the line for the second game in successive starts.
His big left boot has been a serious weapon for Ireland in the past but could this be the moment Lowe is jettisoned for a player in better form? Farrell could start Hansen on the left wing with Freeman on the right, despite not having that left-footed kicking ability.
VERDICTS: Freeman and Hansen.
Another semi-forced hand in the form of a head injury to Garry Ringrose ushered in the all-Scottish midfield partnership of Sione Tuipulotu and outside centre Huw Jones and both men were outstanding against Australia on Saturday, with the former scoring the opening try on eight minutes and the latter's increasingly good form proving crucial to the fluidity of the Lions' attacking play.
Again, it was another case of a big game player in Tuipulotu rising to the occasion when it mattered after some quieter outings in the tour matches.
Bundee Aki came off the bench to replace the inside centre around the hour mark but it looks like the Ireland pairing with Ringrose clear to play again from Tuesday will not manage to unseat their Scottish rivals for the MCG Test.
VERDICTS: Tuipulotu and Jones.
Nothing to see here with scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park and fly-half Finn Russell's game management oozing class against the Wallabies at Suncorp Stadium. Gibson-Park's excellent box kicking was a key to unlocking the Australian defence while Russell's goal-kicking added an extra layer of confidence to the Lions gameplan Same again in Melbourne please.
VERDICTS: Gibson-Park and Russell.
The Lions scrum came under pressure from the Wallabies in Brisbane with referee Ben O'Keeffe twice penalising the loosehead props, Ellie Genge and then replacement Andre Porter for hinging. But the trio to a man were superb in the loose, hooker Sheehan scoring the game-clinching try and tighthead Furlong looking like a player reborn in his seventh consecutive Lions Test start after a season severely disrupted by injury.
No change here.
VERDICTS: Genge, Sheehan, Furlong.
A foot injury to starting lock Joe McCarthy could throw a spanner in the works for hopes of an unchanged forward pack in Melbourne this Saturday. The Ireland man's plantar fascitis, a painful inflammation of the fibrous tissues connecting the heel with the toes in the sole of a foot, will need to be carefully managed if he is to retain his tighthead lock jersey alongside captain Maro Itoje.
Ollie Chessum was McCarthy's replacement on in 42 minutes and would be favourite to start in his place but Scott Cummings and James Ryan could also stake claims if Itoje fails to recover.
VERDICTS: Itoje, McCarthy – fitness permitting.
The big beasts bared their teeth and claws in Brisbane as Tadhg Beirne and Tom Curry both vindicated their selections and then some to blow the Wallabies away. The two flankers and No.8 Jack Conan all made their mark, earning the generous praise of Andy Farrell and each can expect to retain their jerseys this Saturday.
VERDICTS: Beirne, Curry, Conan.
The Lions bench should have continued with the starters' dominant play but were eclipsed by a hungry and impactful Australia bench. Given the quality of back rowers in this squad, the likes of Henry Pollock, Jac Morgan and Josh van der Flier will be knocking on the door for inclusion at Ben Earl's expense this time around.
VERDICTS: Kelleher, Porter, Stuart, Chessum, Earl.
Having selected a replacement fly-half who can play full-back in Marcus Smith and an out and out inside centre in Bundee Aki last Saturday, Andy Farrell may reconfigure his backline bench options for the second Test.
How about a back-up 10 who can just as easily play at 12, and a 13 who can cover the wing positions? Step forward Owen Farrell and Garry Ringrose.
VERDICTS: Mitchell, Farrell, Ringrose
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