Why the 'aggro-factor' is the Lions' secret weapon - and how one star's versatility is already bearing fruit: CHRIS FOY on tour with the Lions

One game into the Lions’ Australian odyssey and it’s all simmering nicely. Good. Here’s to the aggro, the hostility, the edge and the niggle, in every conceivable form. It’s all part of the tour tradition.

It became a mismatch on Saturday in Perth, but there were welcome dashes of spice. The stadium announcer decided to go rogue by publicly calling out the presence of a large foreign legion in the visiting ranks. Fair enough. Henry Pollock managed to wind up the Western Force players. Fair enough. They confronted him angrily and the Lions players piled in to support their squad rookie. Fair enough too.

Bring it on. Let’s have it all. These are staple aspects of what a Lions campaign is supposed to be about. It is a passionate, high-intensity business. They can shake hands, have a hug and share a beer after, but it is meant to be feisty and fierce, because it is so rare and it matters so much.

The hosts know that – given the odds against them – they have to unsettle the tourists any way they can, and that’s okay, even if it extends to strategic barbs over the tannoy system. For their part, the Lions announced their arrival here by making strident demands about Wallabies being released to play for their franchises, prompting defiant Rugby Australia to stand up for themselves.

That’s all part of it too. From pitch to stands to boardroom, there can be and should be tensions and pantomime villains, as it makes the whole event – the ‘show’ – far more interesting. Here’s hoping the relevant authorities let it all keep simmering and don’t act as sanitising spoilsports. There’s a long history of antagonism in the build-up to Test series, not least in 2017 when All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen and the Kiwi media set about trying to destabilise the Lions at every turn in a relentless campaign. Eventually, the Lions returned fire and the stage was set for a classic series.

On the last, Covid-wrecked tour, Rassie Erasmus over-stepped the line by calling out the officials. And back in 2001 here, it went too far, when Duncan McRae attacked Ronan O’Gara with one of the worst acts of violence in living memory – pinning him down and unleashing a flurry of punches to the head, leaving the Irishman’s face in a shocking state. That was wild and outrageous and incited real ill-will, to the point where the offender was roughed-up in the street and received death threats. 

There is a line and a limit. But wind-ups and the odd scuffle are all part of the rich tapestry. Having an enforcer still helps and Joe McCarthy – the Leinster lock – showed against the Force that he is the ideal man to fill that vital role and partner captain Maro Itoje in the Tests. When Pollock’s fist-clenched celebration sparked a dust-up, McCarthy was first in to back up his English team-mate. That will have gone down well with Andy Farrell.

The Irish giant is just what the British and Irish side need up front; an imposing presence with a hard edge. He’s ready to dish it out if required and that latent threat is still relevant in the cleaned-up modern game. He can complement Itoje well, leaving a place at blindside to be contested by another lineout forward such as Tadhg Beirne or Ollie Chessum – who will have a prime opportunity to enhance his case against the Reds in Brisbane on Wednesday.

An aggro factor can help to ignite a team. That was certainly the case when England came here in 2022 and Ellis Genge took offence to a perceived slight from Australia prop Taniela Tupou. The man known as ‘Tongan Thor’ had meant no harm with some mild comments, but Genge used them as fuel and produced a rampaging onslaught in the second Test which put the visitors on the front foot and turned the series England’s way.

So, let Farrell’s squad circle the wagons and seize on anything they need – such as opponents getting stuck into Pollock or announcers mocking their abundance of imports. In Perth, the voice reading out the Lions team said: ‘The Aussie at No 14, Mack Hansen. Another Aussie at 12, Sione Tuipulotu. At No 11, the Kiwi now Irishman, James Lowe. At prop, the former South African schoolboy now Scotsman, Pierre Schoeman.’

When told he had been announced as an Australian, Scotland captain Tuipulotu said: ‘Oh, was I? I knew there would be some “good humour” coming back home to Australia. These are all things we’ve got to take in our stride. To not announce the elephant in the room, I am from Australia. I was born here. I don’t know how funny that gag is to everyone! I’m loving my rugby playing for the Lions. I’m really passionate about it.’

Speaking to Sky Sports, Pollock was asked about his clash with Force players and Northampton’s back-row sensation appeared utterly unfazed. ‘I’m just trying to be myself and if that means someone says something wrong and I get on the end of it, so be it,’ he said.

Farrell wants his team to stand up for themselves and back each other up. He made that clear when he said after the 54-7 win: ‘We will get around anyone who is targeted. It’s not about protecting one player; it is protecting everyone. As we come up against these teams, they will be hungry, getting under our skin and trying to find a way to beat us.’

In the weeks ahead, Australian sides certainly will keep trying to get under British and Irish skin, as a means of reducing the inevitable gulf in class. Words and deeds will be used to disrupt and irritate the Lions, and they have every right to react. It isn’t 1974, with the infamous ‘99 call’ to punch the nearest opponent – those days are long gone. But a firm response to any provocation is needed.

This isn’t supposed to be a fluffy love-in. These tours are meant to be tough and uncomfortable and worth fighting for, almost literally at times. More aggro and hostility, please.

Daly's versatility paying dividends 

Elliot Daly is giving himself every chance of achieving a rare feat; playing Tests for the Lions on three successive tours, in three different positions. 

The veteran England back has been outstanding in both appearances he has made so far – off the bench against Argentina in Dublin and as the starting full-back in the romp against the Force. 

As well as scoring two tries, he was assured in covering the back-field to absorb pressure, produced deft handling and canny kicking. Blair Kinghorn is on his way south after helping Toulouse win yet another Top 14 title but the regal Scot won’t be a shoo-in at 15 for the series against the Wallabies now that Daly has stolen a march on him. 

In 2017, he operated on the left win in all three Tests against the All Blacks and four years later he started in midfield against South Africa. Now, he is pushing hard for inclusion as the form full-back and could go on to emulate Gareth Thomas, who played in three back-line positions during the ill-fated 2005 series in New Zealand. 

Daly’s ability to kick long-range goals is a handy asset. Asked if he can still ‘hit them from 60’, the 32-year-old said: ‘Yep.’ And what about positional preference? ‘Anywhere Faz wants to put me,’ he added.

Meanwhile, plenty of Lions supporters will wish that Kinghorn could bring Jack Willis with him from France, but the exiled England flanker continues to be a victim of the staggering depth of pedigree opensides across the home nations.

He is more than good enough to grace this tour, but it is unlikely that he will be called upon unless there are a sudden flurry of injury setbacks.

Perth put on a show 

Perth’s Optus Stadium was a classy, smart, modern venue for the opening tour match here – just one of so many impressive, state-of-the-art arenas in this sports-mad country. 

The facilities were outstanding, well, all except the sandy pitch. It is easy to see why maintaining the surface is tricky as they constantly rotate between Aussies Rules football, rugby and cricket at the stadium. In addition, the oval shape makes the pitch quite distant from the sides, but that is a minor quibble. 

There was a decent turn-out of Lions fans for the first fixture and they were treated to a big win on a sunny day in beautiful surroundings, close enough to walk to from the city and with a kick-off time which allowed for the festivities to continue after the game. 

It helped that access in and out was so easy and efficient, rather than a protracted wait for transport killing the mood, as is so often the case in Britain and Ireland. Those who bothered to come to Perth were treated by the weather and the riverside backdrop, the wildlife and the clean, green environment. 

The healthy early-tour contingent was a mix of expats and those on long-haul trips and as was apparent in Dublin for the Pumas game, merchandise sales must have been phenomenal given the amount of replica red shirts everywhere. What a jackpot for the title sponsors, who are enjoying a lot of promotional bang for their bucks.

Last Word 

Lions Test selection is still wide open in most areas. The make-up of the side to face the Reds will offer more clues, but several places remain up for grabs. There is real intrigue at scrum-half, after Tomos Williams’ fine display in Perth was cut short by hamstring trouble. 

The Welshman has put himself in the mix if he is not badly injured, but much depends on whether Jamison Gibson-Park can hit the ground running after a few weeks out. Ireland’s tempo-setting dynamo was seen as a certainty to wear No 9 against Australia, but he may not be an untouchable first-choice after all. 

At loosehead, Genge v Andrew Porter is a close call, with the Englishman just ahead right now. At tighthead, Tadhg Furlong struggled on Saturday so Will Stuart or even Finlay Bealham could come through. Scrum problems were a glaring issue against the Force, as were the messy re-starts. 

Second row seems to be sorted – Itoje and McCarthy – but there is still a race for places across the back row. Finn Russell has his name on the No 10 shirt and James Lowe is bound to line up on the left, while Tommy Freeman deserves to be the favourite to start on the other wing, despite Farrell’s praise for Mack Hansen. 

The midfield picture is unclear as all the centres are striving for match sharpness, but Tuipulotu has more of a varied repertoire than Bundee Aki at 12 if he can his stride soon. A familiar partnership with Huw Jones makes sense. 

The Reds will be a true test before the Lions reserves are deployed against the Waratahs, then the Test XV is likely to be unleashed against the Brumbies in Canberra, 10 days before the series opener. It will all come round fast now. The audition phase will soon be over.