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Published 17:32 22 Jun 2021 BST
Updated 18:49 22 Jun 2021 BST
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"The biggest frustration for Sexton, is you look at the guys that have been picked ahead of him - the likes of Owen Farrell or Finn Russell - he completely outplayed them in the Six Nations... between Johnny and Owen, I don’t understand how Johnny was not picked. I could only presume it’s because Owen plays 12 as well."Gatland has acknowledged Farrell's dip in Test form, but backed the three-tour Lions veteran to come good in South Africa. He also spoke of a big vote of confidence when the squad's leadership group was being decided. [caption id="attachment_230525" align="aligncenter" width="1280"]
Owen Farrell helped the Lions to a Test Series win over Australia, in 2013, and a draw with New Zealand in 2017. (Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile)[/caption]
"I've spoken to Owen," said Gatland, "and the chat was that it wasn’t [his] greatest Six Nations but we picked him on the leadership he has and experience he can bring.
"He’s a competitor, and what he’s achieved in the game, the success he has had speaks for itself." He continued:
"At the administration day I asked the players all to vote and pick four for the leadership group. We’ve done that. It was interesting that he ended up with the most votes out of anyone in the leadership group. "It speaks volumes for the respect in which he’s held by the other players in the group - not just the England players, but the others too. I think knowing him as a competitor he’ll go out and make the most of his opportunities, and I expect him to have a great tour."News that Farrell was the runaway vote-getter for the Lions squad's four-man leadership group certainly divided opinion: https://twitter.com/RutlandRex/status/1407370493871726596 https://twitter.com/glove931/status/1407312524702269450 https://twitter.com/MoeJarler/status/1407361531591942149 Gatland also spoke about selecting four Scotland players in his starting XV to face the Japanese - the most a Lions team has gone with since 2009. "If you’re playing in Scotland, you want a reasonable representation of Scottish players," the Kiwi reasoned. "From that aspect, we’ve got Ali [Price] there as well and we did talk about Finn and Chris [Harris] potentially being on the bench. "For these players it’s important they get the chance to play at Murrayfield in front of their own fans and family. That was bit of a motivation in terms of having that Scottish representation."
*A very special British & Irish House of Rugby show - fronted by Sean O'Brien and Alex Goode - will start on June 25 and run for the duration of the Lions Tour. Follow and subscribe to it HERE
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