
Football
Share
Published 07:47 26 Jun 2017 BST
Updated 08:30 27 Jun 2017 BST
Explore more on these topics:
The Lions coach, speaking at his press briefing in New Zealand on Monday morning, hailed Sam Warburton's impact off the bench in the first test in Eden Park, despite the fact that it was clear to most observers that Warburton had looked leggy and off the pace, as he has done in the last few months.
Warburton suffered a knee injury in April and this was followed by a recent ankle injury which kept him out of the first test.
Warburton's preparations have, inevitably, been disrupted with these injuries and O'Mahony will have right to feel aggrieved if he is replaced by a man who looks to be a mere a shadow of his former self.
Gatland emphasised the need for the Lions to shake things up in order to match the New Zealand physicality. He then mentioned Maro Itoje and Warburton as those who are going to be shaking thing up.
"We might have to shake it up a little bit," Gatland said. "Maro made an impact coming off the bench and was very physical. Sam was excellent at the breakdown when he came on," continued the 53-year-old."There's the guys on Tuesday night who get a real chance to make an impact in that area as well. Sometimes at the top level, it's not about playing pretty rugby and we've seen the All Blacks be prepared to be pretty physical in the past. They were pretty brutal in that breakdown area and we need to match fire with fire," added the New Zealander. It's hard to see O'Mahony being started after these comments and this seems a tad unfair on the Munster man who is markedly better than Warburton in the line out and has looked more physical in the breakdown too. Gatland went on to question the Lions pride in his press briefing.
“If I was playing on Saturday night and I felt that I was physically dominated, I’d be a little bit disappointed in myself and I’d be doing everything I could physically do the following week to make sure I fixed that area of the game,” said Gatland.If I felt my pride was hurt a little bit, I’d be wanting to fix that. That’s what I’d be doing as a player."
Major update on controversial new Munster coaching hire following backlash
This was inevitable. There has been a major update in the ongoing story of Munster’s ‘incoming’ backs coach Roger Randle. In an exclusive from the Irish Independent, Cian Tracey has reported that the appointment of the New Zealander – who was set to come in ahead of next season – is to be cancelled following […]
Football
1 day ago
Live sport on TV in Ireland this weekend – Football, GAA, Rugby – May 1st to 4th
Some huge clashes! Summer is creeping into view, and that means beer gardens and big screens. And once again, the weekend will not disappoint with some huge Premier League fixtures as we reach the last few weeks, there is Leinster and Ulster SFC games, and the Irish provinces featuring in huge European semi-finals. Football Friday […]
Football
1 day ago
Prendergast admits huge disappointment at Munster situation
Football