The nature of the British and Irish Lions always poses a unique challenge for a selector but Andy Farrell’s task of putting together a team for the third Test provides fresh questions still for the head coach. With the series secure, the would-be decider in Sydney now becomes a shot at history – not since the 4-0 win on the 1927 trip to Argentina, when the British Isles team won all nine matches on the wider itinerary for the concession of a total of nine points, has a “Lions” side swept a Test entanglement of more than one match.
Of course, there is “The Invincibles’” tour of 1974 in slightly more recent memory but a fourth Test draw in Johannesburg discounts the otherwise remarkable achievements of Syd Millar and Willie John McBride’s squad. It can certainly be said, then, that the Lions are chasing something special.
