Only the select few have ever worn the iconic Lions jersey. Who will be next?

by Paul Cook –

Week two of the 2013 Six Nations Championship saw another batch of impressive performances from players who will also have one eye on the upcoming British & Irish Lions tour of Australia. Where as last week, it was the Irish pack that took all the plaudits for their contribution to the win over Wales, it was the second and back rows of Scotland that showed the greatest cohesion over the weekend, proving the point of difference against Italy at Murrayfield and paving the way for their backline to profit.

Rugby News has again digested the three tests, cogitated and deliberated, argued and berated and come up with another team of the week and in an illustration of just how tightly contested Warren Gatland’s final selection will be (or of how wrong we are!), only three players hold onto their starting jerseys from week one; Rory Best, Dan Cole and Owen Farrell.

Even in defeat at home to England, Ireland would still have thrown up two of the three front row spots, were it not for Cian Healy’s ill discipline at the ruck when he – allegedly (the IRFU are appealing) – attempted to rearrange Dan Cole’s ankle from it’s socket with his own boot. His all round performance warranted selection, his discipline didn’t and that cannot be at question when faced with the pressure cooker of Lions duty in Australia’s backyard in four months time, hence Gethin Jenkins’ promotion.

Scotland and England dominate positions 4-10 with Richie Gray, debutant Rob Harley and the guy who came in from the cold – Johnnie Beattie – reflecting the Scots domination of the breakdown against the Azzurri, while Geoff Parling barely put a foot wrong in Dublin and was ably assisted by his captain Chris Robshaw, who put in as good a captain’s knock as you could hope to see.

The halves combination could have remained the same with Owen Farrell’s metronomical boot, improving defence and growing maturity making him a shoe-in and Ben Youngs’ constant probing of the Irish fringes making him a persistent threat. However, it was the glue that Scotland’s Greig Laidlaw provided between his forwards’ ascendancy and his backs’ desire – particularly in the first half – that earns him the nod at no.9 this time round.

Scrum-half Greig Laidlaw played a pivotal role in Scotland’s impressive win over Italy

Ireland nailed down both our wing spots with Keith Earls again impressing off the bench after replacing last week’s leading left winger Simon Zebo, who suffered a broken bone in his foot. With Zebo now out for up to 10 weeks, it’s a chance for Earls and fellow candidates George North – who scored the late winner in Paris – and Mike Brown of England to stake their claims.

On the opposite wing it was tyro Craig Gilroy who got the chocolates. After getting caught in the Millenium Stadium headlights a little bit in his Six Nations debut last week, the 21yr old Ulsterman was a standout performer in the Dublin rain, showing pace and footwork in attack and plenty of starch in defence – his star is firmly on the rise.

In midfield, Scotland’s Matt Scott got the vote with Manu Tuilagi showing exactly what he brings to the table when he replaced last week’s favourite, Billy Twelvetrees, off the bench. Twelvetrees didn’t do much wrong in only his second international start but by the same token, he didn’t get near to the heights of his debut the previous week and Tuilagi’s introduction helped to solidify England at a time when they were under the most pressure.

Impressive defence, a formidable workrate and a consistently effective kick chase meant that England’s Brad Barritt outpointed Scotland’s Sean Lamont at outside centre and while last week, you could have thrown a blanket over the no.8’s across the board, this week it was the turn of the boys at the back to excel en masse. Alex Goode’s positional sense and kicking from hand were exemplary against Ireland; Stuart Hogg added to his burgeoning reputation with another fine display and a length of field try against Italy and Rob Kearney was his usual dependable self but the 3 points had to go to Leigh Halfpenny for his role in Wales’ backs-to-the-wall triumph in Paris.

His diminutive frame stood tall once again as he answered his country’s call with a performance of heroic but understated control and his composure from the kicking tee in the closing minutes shut the door on any thoughts of a French comeback. With three rounds left to go, there’s still plenty of time for anyone to impress but on the evidence so far, it would appear that the Lions should be bringing a squad of some talent Down Under.

Here’s our team of the week:

TEAM OF THE WEEK

And here’s how we got there. The points break down from Week Two:

Loosehead prop: 3 – Gethin Jenkins (WAL), 2 – Cian Healy (IRE), 1 – Joe Marler (ENG)

Hooker: 3 – Rory Best (IRE), 2- Ross Ford  (SCO), 1 – Richard Hibbard (WAL)

Tighthead prop: 3 – Dan Cole (ENG), 2 – Mike Ross (IRE), 1 – Euan Murray (SCO)

No. 4 Lock: 3 – Richie Gray (SCO), 2 – Andrew Coombs (WAL), 1 – Mike McCarthy (IRE)

No. 5 Lock: 3 – Geoff Parling (ENG), 2 – Jim Hamilton (SCO), 1 – Donnacha Ryan (IRE)

Blindside Flanker: 3 – Rob Harley (SCO), 2 – Ryan Jones (WAL), 1 – Peter O’Mahony (IRE)

Openside Flanker: 3 – Chris Robshaw (ENG), 2 – Kelly Brown (SCO), 1 – Sean O’Brien (IRE)

No.8: 3 – Johnnie Beattie (SCO), 2 – Tom Wood (ENG), 1 – Jamie Heaslip (IRE)

Scrum-half: 3 – Greig Laidlaw (SCO), 2 – Ben Youngs (ENG), 1 – Mike Phillips (WAL)

Fly-half: 3 – Owen Farrell (ENG), 2 – Dan Biggar (WAL), 1 – Ruaridh Jackson (SCO)

Left Winger: 3 – Keith Earls (IRE), 2 – George North (WAL), 1 – Mike Brown (ENG)

Inside centre: 3 – Matt Scott (SCO), 2 – Manu Tuilagi (ENG), 1 – Jamie Roberts (WAL)

Outside Centre: 3 – Brad Barritt (ENG), 2 – Sean Lamont (SCO), 1 – Jonathan Davies (WAL)

Winger: 3 – Craig Gilroy (IRE), 2 – Chris Ashton (ENG), 1 – Alex Cuthbert (WAL)

Full-back: 3 – Leigh Halfpenny (WAL), 2 – Alex Goode (ENG), 1 – Stuart Hogg (SCO)

So, are we way off the mark?

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