"I'll be waiting" - England star Henry Pollock assesses his British & Irish Lions chances ahead of Thursday's squad announcement

The 20-year-old has enjoyed a breakout season with the Saints, winning his first England cap during the Six Nations and playing a starring role in their run to the Champions Cup final.

Speaking after another brilliant performance against Leinster in Saturday's Champions Cup semi-final, Pollock was coy on suggestions that he'll be carrying the stuffed lion on tour, as the youngest tourist in Australia this summer.

"I've thought about it, but at the end of the day, you can't control it," said the one-cap international. "It's subjective. It would be an honour to be able to go on that plane and represent the Lions, but if it's not this year, then I'm sure I'll be able to bounce back and pick myself up.

"It's not up to me, it's up to the Lions coaches. So I'll be waiting at the same time as you, I guess."

The Banbury native has been in fine form this campaign, scoring on his debut in the Champions Cup against Castres Olympique in December and going over twice against Wales on his international bow. If anything illustrates the flanker's meteoric rise to this level, it's what he was doing at the 2024 semi-final in Dublin. During the same fixture, played last year at Croke Park, Pollock was in the crowd wearing fancy dress.

"Reflecting back on the past year, it's been pretty mad," the Saints academy product said. "Coming into the season, getting to a Champions Cup final and winning a cap for the senior [England] team would've been a dream. Every opportunity I've got, I feel like I've taken that.

"We've got such a good group at Northampton. Even when stuff does go wrong in the Premiership, we can bounce back, get a bit of form, come to Leinster and win in their backyard."

Pollock, who spent time on loan last season in the Championship with Bedford Blues, also touched on the surreal nature of facing some of Saturday's opponents.

"Before the game, you look at the team sheet and you're going, 'wow, Jordie Barrett's playing', and it's pretty cool," said the 2024 Under-20 Championship Player of the Tournament, "but I think on the pitch, it's just muscle memory.

"You don't really think too much. Your next action is the biggest one, and it doesn't really matter who you're up against. At the end of the day, it's just about the connection between the men beside you and anything you can do to make that positive."

Pollock's Northampton are seventh in the Premiership and will face French side Bordeaux-Begles in Cardiff on May 24th for the Champions Cup crown.