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Warren Gatland has assembled a very exciting Lions coaching team

Scotland and Wales dominate as Warren Gatland announces Lions coaching line-up - INPHO
Scotland and Wales dominate as Warren Gatland announces Lions coaching line-up - INPHO

While there is no doubt Warren Gatland would have wanted Andy Farrell and Graham Rowntree in his coaching team for this summer’s British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa, I think the group he has assembled is very exciting.

The main reason he would have wanted Farrell and Rowntree – apart from the fact that they are excellent coaches – is because they have coached the Lions before. Having that continuity is priceless when it comes to the Lions because there is so little time to get up to speed. Familiarity really helps to oil the wheels. With six games in such a tight period of time, followed by three Tests back-to-back, every member of that squad will be used and they will all need to be interchangeable. Consistency of messaging and tactics will be vital.

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Gregor Townsend and Steve Tandy, Scotland’s head coach and defence coach respectively, have not previously coached the Lions. But I think it is fair to say Gregor is the outstanding attack coach in the northern hemisphere at the moment and Tandy was probably the outstanding defence coach in the most recent Six Nations – the impact he has had on that Scottish defence is incredible. I don’t think you can argue with either appointment. Gregor, of course, was instrumental in our success in 1997 and as a national coach himself will be a useful sounding board for Gats.

As for Robin McBryde, who similarly has no Lions coaching experience, Gats knows him and trusts him from their time together at Wales. And McBryde will know half the Lions squad anyway from his time with Wales and Leinster, where he now coaches.

The absence of a specialist lineout coach mildly concerns me. I would have fought hard to get Paul O’Connell on the tour. Perhaps Gats did. Also, the lack of an English coach is noteworthy. But overall it looks like a solid coaching ticket. And perhaps the lack of continuity in coaches will be less important than usual. This tour is unique in that South Africa have not played together for 18 months either. For once the Lions will not be on the back foot in that regard.

Scotland and Wales dominate as Warren Gatland announces Lions coaching line-up

From the Cabinet of All the Talents to the Back Up Plan. No matter which way Lions head coach Warren Gatland tries to spin it, this is largely his second-choice coaching staff for the tour to South Africa. That, however, should not diminish the Lions’ chances of beating the Springboks.

Steve Tandy may not have the profile of Andy Farrell but his record as Scotland defence coach is second to none. He has turned what has been a traditional weakness into a strength. In the opening match of the Six Nations, Scotland restricted England to six points, their lowest total at Twickenham in 11 years. A player like Gloucester centre Chris Harris has been transformed from liability into a defensive general. That’s the sign of an excellent coach.

Similarly, too, anyone who witnessed Leinster take Exeter’s much vaunted pack to pieces, especially at the scrum and the lineout, will not quibble with Robin McBryde’s qualifications to succeed Steve Borthwick as forwards coach. As the former Wales forwards coach, he has a long and successful relationship with Gatland in which they won multiple Six Nations titles.

Sometimes second choices work out for the best as many Durham University students will tell you. The reason that Gatland wanted Farrell, Borthwick and Graham Rowntree, his scrum coach, was largely because of their previous connection as a Lions coaching staff. The challenge now is to build that collective understanding and rapport with a group, also including Gregor Townsend and Neil Jenkins, who have never previously worked together as a whole.

Their first collective task will be the fiendishly difficult challenge of whittling down 36 players to tour. Look at the back row alone where players of the class of Sam Underhill, Hamish Watson and Josh Navidi are not guaranteed squad places. Scotland, for once, will be well represented in what are sure to be some heated debates. Whatever the disagreements, clarity and communication of a single message are vital. There is simply too little time for divisions and disunity in such a short tour, particularly under the added pressure of a Covid-19 bubble.

Gatland has personal connections with all four men. Now he needs them to click together for the most imposing challenge in international rugby.

Daniel Schofield


08:44 AM

Scottish influence

Although Tandy is Welsh, he is currently Scotland's defence coach. His involvement, along with that of Townsend, means that Scotland will have coaching representation on the Lions tour for the first time since 1997. It will also be the duo's first tours as coaches - so, too, Robin McBryde.

Given that, it is now much more likely that the Scottish playing representation in South Africa will be heavier than on previous tours. No more than three Scotland players have been selected in an initial Lions squad since the successful 1997 tour to South Africa


08:37 AM

An interesting tidbit from Gatland

"As the Tour approaches we may look to bring in some extra resource..."

That's interesting. I wonder where he might look to and in which areas? Presumably the scrum, since Graham Rowntree is reported to have pulled out of attending the tour and there is has not been an out-and-out scrum coach named.


08:33 AM

Reaction from Gatland

I am very pleased to have assembled such a high-quality coaching team.

It’s a really strong group and I’m excited to see what we can achieve together – I think we’ll all complement each other well in South Africa.

A Lions Tour is a unique challenge, so it’s important to have some continuity in the coaching group. Neil understands the exceptional demands that only a Lions Tour can present, and we will benefit from his knowledge and experience.

But it’s also important to have new voices and a fresh perspective. Gregor is doing an excellent job in charge of Scotland and is an outstanding coach. He also understands the challenges of touring South Africa as a player and what it takes to win there, so I am extremely happy he will be part of the set-up. Steve has made Scotland’s defence one of the most organised in world rugby – something we saw throughout the recent Six Nations. He’s clearly an intelligent coach and someone I am very much looking forward to working with.

Obviously Robin is someone who I know very well from our time together in Wales. He is an impressive and experienced coach who continues to have success with Leinster. I think he’ll be well suited to the Lions environment and I am sure he will do an excellent job with the forwards.

As the Tour approaches we may look to bring in some extra resource, but this will be the core group for the time being.

08:30 AM

Breaking: Warren Gatland announces Lions coaching team

No surprises as Gatland announces that Gregor Townsend (Scotland), Robin McBryde (Leinster Rugby), Steve Tandy (Scotland) and Neil Jenkins (Wales) will assist him for the tour to the home of reigning world champions, the Springboks, as well as the pre-Tour Test match against Japan at Murrayfield on Saturday June 26.

Townsend will look after the attack, McBryde the forwards, Tandy defence and Jenkins will reprise his kicking coach role.

L-R: Robin McBryde, Steve Tandy, Warren Gatland, Gregor Townsend, Neil Jenkins - INPHO
L-R: Robin McBryde, Steve Tandy, Warren Gatland, Gregor Townsend, Neil Jenkins - INPHO

08:23 AM

Who would you like to see?

Let us know in the comments.

If the rumoured line-up is to be believed - Townsend, Tandy and McBryde - would that please you, as a Lions fan? Especially when you consider that Andy Farrell, Steve Borthwick and Graham Rowntree all said no...


08:14 AM

While we wait...

Do you enjoy our rugby coverage? If so, you might be interested in our weekly newsletters, delivered straight to your inbox.

First of all, there is a Rugby Nerd, released every Monday as a statistical look into one of the weekend's talking points.

Rugby Nerd REFERRAL (article)
Rugby Nerd REFERRAL (article)

Then, on Tuesdays during the international season, there is the England Insider, with exclusive submissions from Will Greenwood and chief rugby correspondent Gavin Mairs, among others.

England Rugby Insider - In Article
England Rugby Insider - In Article

Last but by no means least, there is Geech on Friday. Exclusive thoughts and musings from Sir Ian McGeechan.

Geech on Friday promotion
Geech on Friday promotion

08:01 AM

Front-runners

Formerly of Ospreys and Waratahs, Scotland defence coach Steve Tandy is the favourite to take on a defensive role with Gatland's coaching team. You can read more about him, and about why he is the "perfect" coach for the Lions, by clicking here.

Tandy's Scotland colleague - his boss, in fact - Gregor Townsend is hotly-tipped to be given the role of attack coach for this summer's tour. Townsend would be the first Scottish coach to be involved with a Lions tour since Sir Ian McGeechan in 2009. Former Wales forwards coach, Robin McBryde, is expected to be given a forwards role.

Steve Tandy - GETTY IMAGES
Steve Tandy - GETTY IMAGES

07:45 AM

Good morning!

Hello and welcome to Telegraph Sport's live coverage as head coach Warren Gatland announces his coaching line-up for the British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa in the summer.

The announcement, due to be made at 9.30am, is expected to have a distinctly Scottish flavour after the Lions head coach's plans were thrown into disarray as three members of his original coaching ticket all withdrew from the tour for various reasons. Scotland defence coach Steve Tandy is in line to replace Andy Farrell, the Ireland head coach, who pulled out to focus on his country’s summer tour to the South Pacific. Robin McBryde, who worked under Gatland when he was in charge of Wales, is the favourite to be named forwards coach, while Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend is also expected to be on board as Lions attack coach.

Meanwhile Steve Borthwick, the Leicester head coach, also turned down the role as forwards coach after learning of the Lions schedule. Borthwick stood to miss the first three weeks of the Tigers’ preseason and potentially even more if a quarantine period applied. Another Englishman, Graham Rowntree who was expected to reprise his role as scrum coach, pulled out for family reasons after it was confirmed that the tour would be staged in South Africa rather than the British Isles.

The announcement will come on the day that results of a study commissioned by South Africa Rugby estimate that the country's economy is set to lose 6.6 billion rand (£330m) if this year's tour goes ahead without fans. The union admits it will "do anything" to get some supporters into stadia.

The pace of vaccination in Africa's most industrialised nation has been slow, with health experts, trade unions and businesses urging the government to speed up once more supplies become available. SA Rugby is counting the cost too.

"We have pulled out all stops and we are lobbying government," SA Rugby president Mark Alexander told the Sport24 website on Tuesday.