Howley dismisses 'Warrenball' tag

British and Irish Lions assistant Rob Howley backed coach Warren Gatland, insisting he had no idea what ‘Warrenball’ was.

Gatland responded angrily to a question about his perceived tactical limitations in the lead up to the Lions’ clash against Blues in New Zealand.

It led to a discussion over ‘Warrenball’ – a term Gatland said was coined by former London Irish director of rugby Brian Smith to suggest his teams were overly reliant on physicality.

Howley, who has also worked under Gatland with Wales, said the term meant nothing.

“I don’t know what ‘Warrenball’ means. I haven’t got a clue,” the attack coach told a news conference on Tuesday.

“That’s all I can say having been part of my third tour as coach. I’m not too sure what ‘Warrenball’ means.”

MY BALL! 🏉 #LionsNZ2017 #AllForOne pic.twitter.com/Ll30r4Owag

— British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) June 6, 2017

The Lions opened their tour with an unconvincing 13-7 win over the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians and face Blues at Eden Park on Wednesday.

Howley said the Lions were aware of the challenge awaiting them as they seek an improved performance.

“We have to adapt and play what we see. The one thing the players have really enjoyed is rugby chaos, 15 on 15 in training. It’s very unstructured,” he said.

“We are all aware of the pace of the game in the southern hemisphere and it’s important we get up to speed as quickly as possible. That’s the challenge for us, it’s a continual learning process.

“The framework clearly isn’t in place, as you saw by the performance at the weekend, but we know we need to improve in the next couple of weeks.”