Clive Woodward has included eight Irish, four Scots and three English in the British and Irish Lions team he wants to see open the 2025 Test series versus the Wallabies in Brisbane on July 17. The 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning boss with England led the Lions on their ill-fated 2005 expedition to New Zealand where the hosts win the Test series 3-0.
Twenty years on from that trip, they are scheduled to tour Australia and Woodward, writing in his latest Sportsmail column, has now named the team Andy Farrell should pick to see off Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies.
The curiosity about Woodward’s preferred Lions XV is that three of his pack picks haven’t played a single minute of the Autumn Nations Series as both Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong were injury absentees for Ireland while England team selection regulations meant that the Toulouse-based Jack Willis was unavailable to Steve Borthwick.
Woodward certainly must have liked what he saw during November from Gregor Townsend’s Scotland backs as he believes that four players – Blair Kinghorn, Sione Tuipulotu, Duhan van der Merwe and Finn Russell – should be on Farrell’s Lions team sheet.
With Ireland only getting two backline representatives in Garry Ringrose and Jamison Gibson-Park, their selection dominance is in the pack with six picks. Andrew Porter was included in an all-Irish front row with Sheehan and Furlong, Joe McCarthy was named at lock with Josh van der Flier and Caelan Doris – who would be the Lion captain – in the back row.
SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: This is my British and Irish Lions team to beat Australia – and why I wish I'd never taken the coaching job https://t.co/VfdIXAEce8
— Mail Sport (@MailSport) November 29, 2024
That left three spots remaining and Woodward went with England players, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso in the backs and Maro Itoje with Willis in the pack.
The ex-Lions boss only considered Wales players good enough for a bench role, picking Dewi Lake, Jac Morgan and Tomos Williams as cover along with two English, two Irish and one Scot.
Clive Woodward’s British and Irish Lions XV
15 – Blair Kinghorn (Scotland)
14 – Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (England)
13 – Garry Ringrose (Ireland)
12 – Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland)
11 – Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland)
10 – Finn Russell (Scotland)
9 – Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland)
1 – Andrew Porter (Ireland)
2 – Dan Sheehan (Ireland)
3 – Tadhg Furlong (Ireland)
4 – Maro Itoje (England)
5 – Joe McCarthy (Ireland)
6 – Jack Willis (England)
7 – Josh van der Flier (Ireland)
8 – Caelan Doris (Ireland, captain)
Replacements: Dewi Lake (Wales), Ellis Genge (England), Zander Fagerson (Scotland), Tadhg Beirne (Ireland), Jac Morgan (Wales), Tomos Williams (Wales), Marcus Smith (England), James Lowe (Ireland).
