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Left-field options for the Lions captaincy? Five players Warren Gatland should consider
British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland has said his choice of tour captain could come from “left-field”. James Harrington suggests five possibles who would fit that description.
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Less than four months out from the start of the British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand, the question of who will captain the tourists has taken a turn.
Welsh lock Alun Wyn Jones has long been a strong favourite for the job, despite playing in one of the most hotly-contested positions, while much of the speculation has focused on the credentials of the four national captains: Wales’s Jones, England’s Dylan Hartley, Ireland’s Rory Best, and Scotland’s Greig Laidlaw.
Jones even has the public support of three former Lions captains in Martin Johnson, Paul O’Connell and Gavin Hastings.
But Gatland has told Sky Sports News HQ that the Lions’ captain ‘could be someone from left-field’ – and will only be decided after the squad is selected. He had previously said that the tour captain may not be a nailed-on starter for the Test matches. The announcement is due on April 19.
Lions’ coaches have form for this sort of thing. Normally it’s a ‘bolter’ player being given the nod for the red jersey before they have broken into their national side. But, once in a while, it takes the form of a surprise at the top.
In 1997, Ian McGeechan handed the Lions captaincy to a then-relatively unknown Leicester lock by the name of Martin Johnson. He had already been on a Lions’ tour to New Zealand in 1993, after being called-up as a replacement for Wade Dooley, but Geech’s decision to make the towering, glowering Johnson captain in South Africa four years later – before he had captained either country or club – surprised many.
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In 2009, Geech made South Africa’s captain John Smit blink twice when he gave the captain’s job to Paul O’Connell rather than to team-mate and that year’s Six Nations Grand Slam-winning skipper Brian O’Driscoll.
Here are five players – two Englishmen, an Irishman, and a Scot – who surely fulfill the first of Gatland’s criteria, and who therefore could be in the frame for the big job on the newly discovered continent of Zealandia.
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Owen Farrell
Without a doubt the strongest of the outside bets. Probably. He has a European Champions Cup title, a Premiership title, and a Six Nations Grand Slam under his belt, and was a constant highlight in England’s unbeaten 2016. Two games into the 2017 Six Nations, he has even staked a strong claim to be England captain at the 2019 World Cup. And, while Dylan Hartley’s chances of being named Lions captain appear to be going the way of the dodo, Farrell’s making sure his name is being spoken of in all the right places. England looked more dangerous when Hartley was substituted and Farrell was captain against both France and Wales earlier this month. He can play 10 or 12 and if he does play outside, say, Johnny Sexton, with the latter taking on kicking duties, the danger of too many responsibilities – not to mention excessive targeting – is greatly reduced.
Sam Warburton
Warren Gatland’s choice as Lions captain for the tour to Australia four years ago, when he became the youngest captain in Lions’ history at just 24, Sam Warburton has dropped down the pecking order of Welsh flankers, let alone likely Lions ones. But since giving up the Welsh captaincy he has put in two colossal performances at six against Italy and England which have seen his star rise rapidly, and he must now be very much in the mix for the trip. Is it that much of a stretch for the New Zealand coach to go back to a man he knows and trusts, who has recently enjoyed a break from the pressures of international captaincy and may be a little more refreshed?
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Jonny Gray
Not quite as daft as it sounds – even though he has never toured with the Lions. Gray has captained Glasgow Warriors since November 2015, with no small success. They finished third in his first half-season in charge, are currently fifth and chasing a top-four finish this season, and have qualified for the European Champions Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history. He will be 23 and could have 33 international caps to his name when the Lions fly out to New Zealand. While comparisons to Richie McCaw will be unfair to just about any rugby player until the end of days, it is worth remembering that he was 25 and had 36 caps when Graham Henry made him full-time captain in 2006. And don’t forget, McCaw captained New Zealand for the first time for against Wales in 2004, aged just 23. Gray is a Scotland captain-in-waiting – and a future Lions captain. The question is whether it will be this tour, the next one, or the one after that.
CJ Stander
Project player he may be, but no one can seriously question South African-born Stander’s pride and passion when playing in the green of Ireland or the red of Munster. Strong display after strong display in the back row means he has become one of the first names on coach Joe Schmidt’s team sheet. Despite the fact that the Lions’ number four, five, six, seven and eight shirts are among the most fought-over heading into squad selection, Stander – as one of the standout loose forwards in world rugby right now – is sure to be high on Gatland’s list. And he has captained Munster.
Maro Itoje
Another one who has yet to don the Lions’ jersey, Itoje – at the age of 22 – would become the youngest-ever Lions captain if he is offered (and accepts) the job. It is the longest of shots, however. He has talent pouring out of his ears, but age and experience count against him. He will have a ridiculously small number of international caps (a maximum of 12) when the squad is announced on April 19. But he has the support of former Lion Lewis Moody, who sees more than a little of Martin Johnson in the young Saracen. And he did captain England U20s to the World Cup in 2014.
