The Lions Will Be Seriously Short Of Numbers For Their Opening Tour Game
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The Lions will play their first tour game just three days after landing in New Zealand.
Warren Gatland’s men will take on a Provincial Union XV which will interestingly feature his son. The game take place just one week after the PRO12 and Aviva Premiership finals, which could feature a large proportion of his squad.
The Lions head coach will presumably give them all a chance to recover, before considering them for midweek game against Tana Umaga’s Auckland Blues on June 7th.
The 41-man squad will get together for the first time this Sunday. There probably won’t be much tactics or rugby discussed here, just a PR event that will feature some interviews and photo ops as they players get their gear. The first official training sessions will take place on Monday, May 15 before players return to their clubs on May 17. A second four-day camp will take place at Carton House, Maynooth from May 21-24.
Given the proximity of the finals and the training camps, Gatland may only have around 15-16 players available to take part. Assembling a team for the opening tour game will be no easy task.
