The Lions Fire Back After Sean O’Brien’s Comments About Warren Gatland & His Coaches
Jason Hennessy
Jason is the editor here at RugbyLAD and a proud Limerick man.
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Not impressed.
It seems the Lions are far from impressed with Sean O’Brien’s comments about Warren Gatland and his coaching team.
The Leinster and Ireland back-row stunned the rugby community with some brutality honest remarks about their preparations ahead of the first and third Tests. O’Brien says the coaches panicked and that they overtrained.
He also came down particularly hard on attack coach Rob Howley, stating that he failed to take control, with Johnny Sexton and Owen Farrell taking the reigns ahead of the second Test.
His comments have clearly struck a chord with the Lions, with British & Irish Lions Chief Executive John Feehan responding to O’Brien’s by sending the following statement to Newstalk:
“I said all along that we had the best coaching team available and I think they proved that in what they achieved in New Zealand.”
“To draw a series with the All Blacks who had not lost a Test match at home for eight years was a remarkable result. Warren and the coaches deserve huge credit for that.”
“People will always have their views on what could have been done better, but the fact is, against all odds, and with limited time preparation, the squad became only the second Lions team in history to either or draw a series in New Zealand in thirteen attempts.”
“That achievement cannot be underestimated.”
