Owen Farrell dazzling the Lions — and Itoje wants him in England squad

Times

2 days ago

When most of the British & Irish Lions squad had left the stadium in Canberra and were heading back to the hotel, Owen Farrell was still out on the field, extending his first proper training session since joining the tour with some timed 50-metre sprints. The former England captain really has hit the ground running in Australia.
Farrell had just trained at inside centre in the training team against the Lions side that will play against the ACT Brumbies here on Wednesday. It is the strongest Lions line-up of the tour, close to the Test starting XV that will be sent out to face Australia in Brisbane a week on Saturday. Farrell, new to the squad and not over jet lag enough to be considered for this game, carved open the first team more than once.
Farrell is expected to warm up with the team before kick-off on Wednesday and then make his tour bow in Adelaide on Saturday, against an Australia & New Zealand Invitational XV. A week later is the first Test and the Lions have made it clear that Farrell will be in contention for the match-day 23.
Finn Russell will start the first Test, no question. He and Jamison Gibson-Park will extend their burgeoning half-back relationship against the Brumbies on Wednesday. But the balance of the bench for this game, featuring Marcus Smith and Mack Hansen, is unlikely to be repeated for the Test series. There is no recognised inside centre cover for Bundee Aki in the squad.
To have all back line bases covered, Sione Tuipulotu would have to come in for Hansen; or Farrell replace Smith; or the Lions could go for a 6-2 bench and trust in Ben Earl. So Farrell is in the mix. And regardless of selection, the Lions are convinced that his influence will improve the team; the first evidence of which they saw at the GIO Stadium on Tuesday.
'He must have had the playbook on the plane over because he has come in and he's not missed a beat,' Johnny Sexton, a former Lions team-mate of Farrell's and now assistant coach, said. 'He's already up to speed, with how he has trained. He came off the plane and knew the plays and everything that was going on.
'You can see the touches he had and you could see how he was helping the No10s. I know from playing ten that if he's at 12, it's a dream. It helps you and makes your job easier. He's another organiser and another playmaker who can control the game. He's a leader.
'Experience is experience. He's a world-class player. Look at what he's won. He's not just a guy who has hung on to the coattails of other people, he's the one who has been driving those teams. He's been fantastic to have in camp and I'm sure he's going to add loads for the rest of the tour.'
Farrell had a disjointed season with Racing 92, impacted by a groin injury that required surgery, and then a concussion. He is not the only one in this squad to be short of rugby recently. Tadhg Furlong, Hugo Keenan, Huw Jones and Tuipulotu all came on tour after injury-disrupted campaigns.
One of the concerns raised by those in the anti-Farrell camp — and no other player in the game triggers such a divisive reaction — is that his arrival could destabilise the squad, putting captain Maro Itoje's nose out of joint and unsettling the fly-half trio of Russell, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith.
'I remember in 2013 when Jonny Wilkinson wasn't picked and I was disappointed. It wasn't that I was delighted because it meant I would have a better chance of playing. I wanted him to come. I wanted to see him,' Sexton said. 'I can see the relationship he [Farrell] has with Finn Russell. It must be from four years ago because they seem to get on really well.'
Itoje has known Farrell since they were both at St George's School, in Harpenden. 'I've known Owen since I was 11,' the Lions captain said. 'But he didn't start talking to me until maybe I was 12 or so. The year 10s didn't really speak to the year 7s.
'He just wants the squad to do well. Sport is, for me, never about ego. I want people to speak, have their voices heard, and contribute in a positive way. It's never about me, if I'm captain, having the final say or sticking my chest out or anything like that. It's not about that.
'It's about, 'How can we as a collective get the best result? How can we as a collective win? How can the team be successful?'
'For the team to be successful, you can't do it by yourself. When the team is successful, everyone wins. Everyone has a brighter light shone on them. And everyone can dine on that glory for years to come. So that's all I care about. And I know Owen's the exact same. He is a team man. Selfless.'
Itoje is delighted that Farrell is returning to Saracens and would love to see him back in an England jersey again. Farrell walked away from Test rugby after the World Cup, citing mental health challenges after finding himself in a maelstrom of negativity.
'I want to see him be happy. If he wants to play for England, why not? That would be amazing if that is in his plans and in his dreams. Owen is one of the best England players that we've ever seen,' Itoje said. 'A fit Owen Farrell makes any team better'.
The Lions may have named a Test-standard team, but it still features new and relatively new combinations. Itoje will pack down with Joe McCarthy for the first time, while Ollie Chessum and Tom Curry will make a first start together in the back row. With Jack Conan at No8, that is a new loose-forward unit. Blair Kinghorn will start at full back with Tommy Freeman on one wing and James Lowe on the other.
The Lions need to make a statement in this game against the Brumbies, as they did on their visit to the Australian capital in 1989. On that occasion, the fixture fell between the first and second Tests. The Lions had lost badly in the first international. The midweek team, led by Donal Lenihan and inspired by Jeremy Guscott, rallied from 18-4 down to beat ACT 41-25. It was a performance and a result that changed the course of the tour, triggering a big shift in confidence and momentum. The Lions went on to win a Test series from 1-0 down for the first and only time.
The Lions on this tour are waiting for a signature performance. The aim, clearly, is to unleash it in the Test series. But this game represents an ideal launchpad, an opportunity to demonstrate what they are about as a team.
The Lions have sought to play with a fluidity in attack, and with a commitment to move the ball, but they have lacked direction at times. The coaches were frustrated that they did not find that punch against the Waratahs when the circumstances demanded it.
'That's definitely the ambition,' Itoje said. 'Rugby doesn't change too much, whether it's under-14s rugby or the Lions. You have to go forward. And that is definitely the case for us. We need to punch holes, go forward, then space opens up, wherever that may be.
'We want to start big and we want to maintain that throughout the whole game. We want our big ball-carriers to get over the gainline, to aggressively attack holes, people like Bundee, Ellis Genge, big Joe McCarthy.
'All these games on tour are about building towards something. And this is another important step forward for us. This is a big game.'
Wednesday, 11amGIO Stadium, CanberraTV: Sky Sports Main Event