British and Irish Lions news: Farrell joins Lions, England half-backs to steer ship vs Waratahs

By Aidan Leo

The widely reported call-up of iconic English fly-half Owen Farrell has been confirmed, with the genius playmaker now officially part of the British and Irish Lions squad.

Farrell has replaced veteran England full-back Elliot Daly, whose mature and experienced presence made a noticeable impact on the squad.

Daly sustained a fractured forearm in the second half against the Queensland Reds on Wednesday, July 2, ruling him out of the Lions tour. 

Additionally, blossoming England half-backs Alex Mitchell and Fin Smith have been called upon by coach Andy Farrell to orchestrate proceedings against the New South Wales Waratahs on Saturday, July 5, at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium.

Andy Farrell on the high-profile replacement

“It is heartbreaking for the group that Elliot’s tour is over. He is a Lions legend who has added so much to the group on and off the field over the past few weeks and over the course of three tours,” Farrell told Sky Sports.

“Owen will now come in and add to our options and bring his own Lions experience to the group.”

“He’s what we need for the squad with Elliot going and Blair coming in,” Farrell continued.

Beirne handed captaincy

Top-tier Irish lock-loose forward Tadhg Beirne captains the side from number four against the Waratahs, stepping in for Lions captain Maro Itoje, who led the team to a dominant win over the Reds in their previous outing

“Congratulations to Tadhg who will lead the side on Saturday night – and also to Blair, Hugo and Ben who will all make their Lions debuts,” said Farrell.

“The games are coming thick and fast now as we face a Waratahs side who will want to make their mark.”

READ MORE: British and Irish Lions news: Rampant Lions rout defenseless Reds

In the back row, there’s a blend of established experience in openside Josh van der Flier and youthful dynamism from number six Henry Pollock and eighth man Ben Earl.

It will be interesting to see how the Lions fare at scrum time in this match, with loosehead Pierre Schoeman, England hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie, and tighthead Finlay Bealham set to lock horns with the Waratahs up front.

The Lions have struggled at set-piece time throughout the tour so far, with consistency lacking since their arrival in Australia

And with Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt allowing his starting prop, Taniela Tupou, to feature at tighthead in this contest, concerns around the scrum battle are even more pressing.

Blossoming half-backs

Both Mitchell and Smith have impressed on tour so far at number nine and 10, respectively.

Smith, particularly, was praised for his creativity and playmaking intent from the bench against the Reds.

The Lions will be hoping for more of the same from the England-international duo.

They are backed up by a Scottish trio, in Blair Kinghorn on the wing, and the all-out-attack combination of Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones in the centres.

The trio form a key part of Scotland’s backline core, alongside fly-half Finn Russell — a player Smith will aim to displace from first-choice contention with a commanding display in this match.

Hugo Keenan finally gets his eagerly anticipated start at full-back, after missing the game against the Reds due to illness.

He has support at right wing from his countryman Mack Hansen, who has shown consistency and precision in his performances thus far in Australia.

After clashing with the Waratahs on Saturday, July 5, the Lions head to Canberra to face off with the ACT Brumbies on Wednesday, July 9.

British and Irish Lions vs. New South Wales Waratahs line-ups:

British and Irish Lions: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Blair Kinghorn, 10 Fin Smith, 9 Alex Mitchell; 1 Pierre Schoeman, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3 Finlay Bealham, 4 Tadhg Beirne (c), 5 James Ryan, 6 Henry Pollock, 7 Josh van der Flier, 8 Ben Earl.

Replacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Tadhg Furlong, 19 Joe McCarthy, 20 Scott Cummings, 21 Jac Morgan, 22 Ben White, 23 Marcus Smith.

Waratahs: 15 Lawson Creighton, 14 Andrew Kellaway, 13 Lalakai Foketi, 12 Joey Walton, 11 Darby Lancaster, 10 Jack Bowen, 9 Teddy Wilson; 1 Tom Lambert, 2 Ethan Dobbins, 3 Taniela Tupou, 4 Fergus Lee-Warner, 5 Miles Amatosero, 6 Rob Leota, 7 Charlie Gamble, 8 Hugh Sinclair (c).

Replacements: 16 Mahe Vailanu, 17 Jack Barrett, 18 Daniel Botha, 19 Matt Philip, 20 Jamie Adamson, 21 Jack Grant, 22 Tane Edmed, 23 Henry O’Donnell.

READ NEXT: Liverpool star Diogo Jota dies aged 28 after tragic car accident