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Tadhg Furlong has been tipped to win selection for next summer’s British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand
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England’s Dan Cole, Wales’ Samson Lee and Scotland’s WP Nel will all be in the mix for Lions selection
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Furlong has emerged as the standout tighthead across Ireland’s impressive autumn series
Ireland prop Tadhg Furlong has revealed that he is “embarrassed” by the speculation linking him to a spot in the British and Irish Lions squad for next year’s series against the All Blacks.
Furlong was one of Ireland’s star performers during their recent November Tests and is now viewed as the favourite to be the Lions’ first choice number three for their tour to New Zealand.
The Leinster stalwart is not getting carried away, however, and feels he still has plenty to do before he appears on Lions’ head coach Warren Gatland’s radar.
“It’s kind of daunting in a way, to be honest with you,” Furlong told PA Sport when asked about his chances of making the Lions squad.
“Because you know in your own head that ‘jeez, my scrum wasn’t great there’ or ‘my entry wasn’t great here, and if I do this against a really great scrummaging pack, I’m going to be torn apart here’.
“That is your thought process. And with people throwing that out, you get kind of embarrassed. The Lions is synonymous with such a big brand and so many great players have played there. Do I see myself there at the minute? No.
“I think I have a long journey to go and, as I said, I’ve only started four games for Ireland, two Heineken Cup games for Leinster and it is a big, big step to be making those shouts.”
