THE THING WITH most dress rehearsals is they take place behind closed doors. What makes today’s one unique is the fact it’ll be in front of a crowd whereas the main event in South Africa won’t have an audience.
For those on stage in Murrayfield this afternoon, fluffing their lines isn’t an option. Remember Johnny Sexton paid the price in 2017 for a sluggish start to his trip, missing out on a starting place for the first Test before Warren Gatland copped on to himself.
The coin can land the other way, too. Who, for example, believed Jeremy Davidson would make the Test team, never mind win the player of the series award, when he lined up for the initial squad photo alongside Martin Johnson, Doddie Weir and Simon Shaw in 1997?
Then again an unexpected hero is a common theme with the Lions. You had Davidson and Paul Wallace in ’97; Alex Corbisiero and Jonathan Davies in 2013 and long before that, Jeremy Guscott in 1989. In other words, it’s best not to assume anything. Things can rapidly change in rugby, especially when the itinerary is so intense.
It’s why today’s game (v Japan, kick off 3pm, live Sky Sports, Virgin Media) matters. For Tadhg Furlong and Robbie Henshaw, today is about avoiding injury and any sort of catastrophe. Tick those boxes and they are one step closer to confirming their place on the Test team.
The other five Irish players, though, have to do a good bit more. In Iain Henderson’s case, it may seem as though a place on the bench is the best he can hope for come the Test series, but such was his form in this season’s Six Nations, as well as on the last Lions tour, that he has a shot at nipping in ahead of Maro Itoje.
Gatland, remember, has made big calls like this before, dropping Sexton in 2017, O’Driscoll in 2013. He picks on form rather than reputation.
It’s why Tadhg Beirne should be optimistic. While there is a lengthy queue to try that number six jersey on for size, Beirne is at the front of it. Everything he offers, his ability to poach, threat at the set-piece, confidence in the carry, suggests he has a real chance of ending this season as a Test starter in South Africa. Today is when he can confirm those suspicions.
As for Jack Conan and Bundee Aki, it’s a different conversation. Few expected them to make this tour yet that doesn’t matter now. Think back to the number of people who expected Peter O’Mahony to lead the team out in the first Test in 2017 and you’ll find that even members of the O’Mahony household hadn’t factored that assumption into their heads.
While competition for Conan’s shirt is sure to be hotly contested, Aki could sneak into the Test team through the side door if Gatland opts to go with Henshaw at 13 and Owen Farrell at out-half. Today is his chance to show he deserves that opportunity rather than to be labelled a dirt-tracker. We might as well warn him now that on a Lions tour, a first chance often doubles up as a final one.
Conor Murray might be luckier. He plays a position where a place in the match-day 23 is harder to avoid than to get. Gatland likes him, trusts him and either hasn’t heard all the noise from within Ireland that Murray should be dropped from the national team or else he just couldn’t care less about it.
So today isn’t just a match, it’s an audition. That said, Japan aren’t quite South Africa in terms of size or style.
“There is definitely a difference in philosophies,” said the Lions assistant coach, Gregor Townsend. “Japan seek to retain more possession, look to move the target a lot in terms of their attack, although there are a lot of similarities to the South Africans with regard to their defensive style. They do rush up a lot and are physical at the breakdown.
“As an attack coach it is actually really good preparation for what we are going to face. The defence side of it, it is a massive challenge. The fact they back their fitness; the fact they seek to keep the ball alive as much as possible. So it is a very tough challenge to start a tour, given that it is an international team. The last games they played, they were up there with the top eight teams in the world.”
The spine of that 2019 Japanese World Cup team is here in Edinburgh; the same midfield; the aggressive and dynamic back row; the six/two split on the bench. “It is going to be a challenge for us,” said Townsend. “They honed their game coming into that World Cup. This is a huge game for them too, to take on the Lions for the first time in their history.
“And to get another scalp like they took in the World Cup is something they would be motivated to do.”
Motivation, though, won’t be a problem for these Lions. “In any sport, it is not often you get the chance to represent something bigger than your country,” said Townsend. “This is one of them.”
No one wants to mess it up.
British & Irish Lions:
15. Liam Williams (Scarlets, Wales) #833, 14. Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby, Wales), 13. Robbie Henshaw (Leinster Rugby, Ireland) #824, 12. Bundee Aki (Connacht Rugby, Ireland), 11. Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby, Scotland), 10. Dan Biggar (Northampton Saints, Wales) #821, 9. Conor Murray (Munster Rugby, Ireland) #790, 1. Rory Sutherland (Edinburgh Rugby, Scotland), 2. Ken Owens (Scarlets, Wales) #829, 3. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster Rugby, Ireland) #818, 4. Iain Henderson (Ulster Rugby, Ireland) #808, 5. Alun Wyn Jones – Captain (Ospreys, Wales) #761, 6. Tadhg Beirne (Munster Rugby, Ireland), 7. Justin Tipuric (Ospreys, Wales) – Back row #786, 8. Jack Conan (Leinster Rugby, Ireland)
Replacements: 16. Jamie George (Saracens, England) #819, 17. Wyn Jones (Scarlets, Wales), 18. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears, England) #814, 19. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, England) #826, 20. Taulupe Faletau (Bath Rugby, Wales) #779, 21. Ali Price (Glasgow Warriors, Scotland), 22. Owen Farrell (Saracens, England) #780, 23. Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, England) #816
Japan:
15. Ryohei Yamanaka, 14. Kotaro Matsushima, 13. Timothy Lafaele, 12. Ryoto Nakamura, 11. Siosaia Fifita, 10. Yu Tamura, 9. Kaito Shigeno; 1. Keita Inagaki, 2. Atsushi Sakate, 3. Jiwon Koo, 4. Wimpie van der Walt, 5. James Moore, 6. Michael Leitch (captain), 7. Lappies Labuschagné, 8. Amanaki Mafi
Replacements: 16. Kosuke Horikoshi, 17. Craig Millar, 18. Asaeli Ai Valu, 19. Jack Cornelson, 20. Kazuki Himeno, 21. Tevita Tatafu, 22. Naoto Saito, 23. Rikiya Matsuda
