Interested.

Leinster coach Stuart Lancaster has admitted he would be interested in linking up with Warren Gatland and the British and Irish Lions next summer for their tour of South Africa.

The former England head coach has enjoyed tremendous success at Leinster since joining the Irish province in 2016, winning the Heineken Cup as well as a PRO14 title in 2018.

But it appears he wants to further test himself next year by helping out with the Lions for the first time in his career. Andy Farrell has worked with Gatland on his last two tours but will likely be unavailable next year now that he is Ireland head coach.

Rob Howley will also likely be overlooked due to his betting scandal and with Steve Borthwick taking the helm at Leicester – Gatland will likely have an entirely new coaching ticket.

And Lancaster has unofficially put his name forward. Providing everything goes back to normal in the next 12 months or so.

“It is a long way off, isn’t it? It just feels like so far away, you just sit there thinking, ‘Oh, the Lions’,” admitted Lancaster this week.

“I think everyone as a coach would ultimately want to test themselves at the highest level but I’ve never personally chatted to anyone about it.

“So we’ll see, there have been fantastic coaching teams that have gone in the past, I’m sure they would all be keen to put their hands up again in the future.

“But let’s hope we’re in a position, probably this time next year, where we’re really actively debating who is going on that tour and that it’s going to be a fantastic tour, and everything that we hoped for will happen.

“But equally who is to know how long this (Covid-19 shutdown) is going to go on, it’s just so hard to look too far ahead.

“My mind is very much focused on do what’s right for today to help society get through tomorrow.

“That would be my view on it.”