O’Driscoll to lead Lions

JOHANNESBURG – Ireland’s Brian O’Driscoll will see his first action for the British and Irish Lions since his controversial injury in the 2005 New Zealand tour when he leads the tourists against the Gauteng Lions tomorrow.

O’Driscoll, the captain of the 2005 Lions, suffered a dislocated shoulder following an alleged spear tackle early in the first test against the All Blacks, ruling him out of the remainder of the tour.
‘I don’t see Wednesday’s game as being about putting wrongs right, it’s just a very exciting opportunity,’ O’Driscoll told a news conference on Monday.
‘I’m delighted to lead the team on Wednesday, it will be a huge honour again. It’s clear we didn’t fire on all cylinders in the opening game, but we managed to dig deep and win against very organised opponents and there’s something in that.’
The centre has enjoyed a phenomenal season with European champions Leinster and Six Nations grand slam winners Ireland and was cited as a key player for the Lions by head coach Ian McGeechan and assistant Warren Gatland.
‘I guess winning does become a habit and it would be fantastic if I could infect the squad with that. But there are numerous winners in our squad, we know how to win and it’s just a matter of building momentum,’ O’Driscoll said.
O’Driscoll did not play in the tour opener on Saturday when the Lions overcame an 18-3 deficit to beat a Royal Highveld XV 37-25, scoring two tries in the last four minutes in Rustenburg.
‘I was frustrated for the boys because I knew they were trying so hard. But the passes just did not stick and there were some uncharacteristic errors. We have the opportunity to improve on that on Wednesday and we will try to play a controlled, simple game,’ O’Driscoll said.
Irish fullback Rob Kearney, Scottish lock Nathan Hines and the English duo of wing Ugo Monye and flanker Tom Croft will make their Lions debuts against Gauteng in Johannesburg.
Ireland wing Tommy Bowe, Welsh centre Jamie Roberts and Irish loose forward David Wallace will play back-to-back games after also playing against the Royal Highveld XV.
The Irish trio of wing Luke Fitzgerald (mild knee strain), centre Keith Earls (sore shoulder) and flyhalf Ronan O’Gara (shoulder knock), as well as the English pair of prop Andrew Sheridan (foot blisters) and centre Riki Flutey (muscle pull behind knee) were not considered for selection.
– Nampa-Reuters