All Black legend Sean Fitzpatrick expects major challenge from DANGEROUS Lions
British & Irish Lions Rugby News

All Black legend Sean Fitzpatrick expects major challenge from DANGEROUS Lions

21 April 2017
Rugby Rucker
  • Sean Fitzpatrick says Lions coach Warren Gatland has picked an ‘excellent squad’
  • The 53-year-old believes his he has picked players who will be able to handle the pressure
  • Fitzpatrick played 92 times for the All Blacks, 62 of those as captain
Former New Zealand captain Sean Fitzpatrick has warned his compatriots to not take the British and Irish Lions lightly when they meet later this year.

“If you had asked me 12 months ago have the Lions got any chance, I would have said not a show in hell,” Fitzpatrick told Fairfax Media from London.

“But 12 months on the influence of Vern Cotter, Eddie Jones and Joe Schmidt, in particular, has changed my thinking.

“Traditionally the Six Nations is a game of attrition and not very expansive, but this was probably the best Six Nations I’ve seen in terms of the quality of rugby and the creation of space, and defensively it was also outstanding.

“It’s an excellent squad. He’s obviously thought about it pretty long and hard, he’s thought about a game-plan that can beat the All Blacks and then he’s gone away and found the players who can do that.

“The quality of the players who have missed out is a good reflection of how good this team is. To have a player like Joe Launchbury, who I thought was the best second-rower in the Six Nations, miss out says a lot.

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“He’s picked a team that’s going to be hugely competitive on the field, but more importantly for touring New Zealand they’re going to do well off the field.

“He’s picked some characters who will earn the respect of New Zealanders, the Peter O’Mahonys of the world, the Jared Paynes. Those are the sort of players, with no disrespect, who might struggle to make the first test team but they will be giving everything they can on and off the field.

“Gats is very smart. He knows what it takes to win in New Zealand. He’s looked at what happened in ’05, when they (the Lions) misread the atmosphere and got it totally wrong. They struggled on the field but more importantly they really struggled off it. And if you’ve got a nation of rugby-mad people against you, it makes it so much harder.”

“Steve Hansen knows these players and he’ll know there’s a massive challenge. That’s what makes it so exciting. Can they beat the All Blacks? If the All Blacks play to their best the Lions are not going to win. But if the All Blacks are five percent off, they’ve got an opportunity.

“If you’re going to beat the All Blacks you’ve got to take them on physically, and then back it up with field position, maintain possession, and defensively be very good. If you look back at what happened in Chicago, that’s the game-plan Joe Schmidt developed.”