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The sides have been named, and the excitement levels are growing. After 12 years of waiting, and three weeks of pre-tour warm-ups and debate, in many respects it’s hard to believe the first Test is nearly here.
The Lions’ quest for an unbeaten tour fell in a rather chilly, hailstone-surrounded heap on Tuesday night in Canberra, where the Brumbies became the first Australian provincial side to beat the British and Irish Lions since Queensland toppled the tourists in 1971.
So many young Brumbies etched their name into history during that win, and it wouldn’t at all surprise to see some of them feature later in the series. Indeed, many of you have suggested already that lock-cum-flanker-cum-number 8 Peter Kimlin should consider himself unlucky not to be donning gold in Brisbane.
It was interesting to see the impact the Lions’ bench had on Tuesday night, and five of those (Hibbard, Cole, Parling, Lydiate, and Farrell) that came off the pine for the Lions against the Brumbies will play the same role for the first Test. A sixth, prop Alex Corbisiero, has been promoted to the starting XV, and will give Wallaby tighthead Ben Alexander a torrid time all night.
The teams line up this way for Brisbane:
Australia: Benn Robinson, Stephen Moore, Ben Alexander, James Horwill (c), Kane Douglas, Ben Mowen, Michael Hooper, Wycliff Palu, Will Genia, James O’Connor, Digby Ioane, Christian Lealiifano, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Israel Folau, Berrick Barnes.
Reserves: Saia Fainga’a, James Slipper, Sekope Kepu, Rob Simmons, Liam Gill, Nick Phipps, Kurtley Beale, Pat McCabe.
British and Irish Lions: Alex Corbisiero, Tom Youngs, Adam Jones, Alun Wyn Jones, Paul O’Connell, Tom Croft, Sam Warburton (capt), Jamie Heaslip, Mike Phillips, Jonathan Sexton, George North, Jonathan Davies, Brian O’Driscoll, Alex Cuthbert, Leigh Halfpenny.
Reserves: Richard Hibbard, Mako Vunipola, Dan Cole, Geoff Parling, Dan Lydiate, Ben Youngs, Owen Farrell, Sean Maitland.
Anyway, it’s time for a good old Q & A session and debate, and so let’s crack on for 90 minutes this morning from 10:30am. Start shooting your questions through now though, and once the mid-morning coffee has kicked in, I’ll start working my way through.
Here are some starting points for you:
• What lessons has Robbie Deans taken from the Reds, Waratahs, and Brumbies?
• Is the Lions’ apparent set-piece advantage really less pronounced than it feels?
• Is Sean O’Brien the unluckiest Irishman in Australia currently?
• Is the Lions’ injury-hit and reshuffled three-quarter line an area for the Wallabies to attack?
• Which side has the better-looking bench? And…
• Has the champagne stopped flowing in Canberra yet?
Looking forward to the discussion from 10.30am AEST.