Saracens player has the footwork, pace and the catch-pass to make him a shoo-in for the first Test against South Africa
When I saw Elliot Daly’s name in the initial British & Irish Lions squad it was my view that he would be the starting outside centre for the Test team. With a week to go that remains my view but the makeup of the midfield remains the hardest part of the side to call and one of the crucial decisions Warren Gatland and his assistant coaches must get right.
Aside from Daly, there was an absence of creativity and pace in the initial squad and I was left wondering where the creative spark might come from if Finn Russell was not playing a leading role. The fact that Russell is injured only adds to my suspicion that Daly has to play at 13, regardless of how well Chris Harris has performed on tour. The picture is clouded because Daly would be a shoo-in if Owen Farrell was playing at fly-half because of the cohesion they have formed with Saracens over the past few months. Granted that has been against Championship opposition but they have developed the kind of chemistry you can’t buy on a Lions tour since Daly moved back to centre on a regular basis.
Related: Five Lions selection posers Gatland must solve to beat South Africa | Robert Kitson
Stuart Hogg; Anthony Watson, Elliot Daly, Robbie Henshaw, Josh Adams; Dan Biggar, Conor Murray; Wyn Jones, Jamie George, Tadhg Furlong, Maro Itoje, Alun Wyn Jones, Courtney Lawes, Tom Curry, Taulupe Faletau
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