Team news:Ireland's Tommy Bowe has been called up to the Lions squad to face the Southern Kings tomorrow as cover for Shane Williams. The Welshman was due to start on the right wing in Port Elizabeth, in a team captained by Munster lock Donncha O'Callaghan, but is now a doubt after complaining of a stomach bug.
Bowe has been the form player of the tournament thus far, with Williams struggling to regain the sort of swagger that saw him named World Player of the Year last year.
Coach Ian McGeechan is already short of options on the wing for tomorrow, after Leigh Halfpenny returned home injured and Rob Kearney suffered a dead leg against Western Province.
The coach will be hopeful Bowe is not needed, given he is a dead-cert for the Test team on Saturday and has Ugo Monye on the bench as well.
O’Callaghan will become the third Irish player to captain the Lions on the current tour.
The make-up of tomorrow’s selection provides a strong indication of McGeechan’s thinking for the first Test and few, if any, of the players on show would be expected to start again on Saturday.
As such, the likes of O’Callaghan, Keith Earls, Luke Fitzgerald and Gordon D’Arcy – who were all named in the starting XV - will need to produce something special if they hope to force their way into the reckoning.
But while McGeechan and his backroom team must have a Test side already pencilled in, the coach maintained today that all players remain eligible for the opening showdown with the Springboks.
“This is Test week and there is a noticeable change in attitude within the touring party,” McGeechan said today. “We are now heading towards the business end of the tour and the reason why we have come to South Africa.
“As you would expect the immediate focus is the next match against the Southern Kings on Tuesday before attention turns to selection for the first Test for which all players will be considered.”
Andy Powell has been given another chance to impress at number eight following his eye-catching performance against Western Province at the weekend.
Simon Shaw will partner O’Callaghan in the second row while Euan Murray, Ross Ford and Andrew Sheridan complete a powerful tight five unit.
In other areas the selection has the distinct feel of a shadow team about it. Scotland lock Nathan Hines will be pressed into action at blindside flanker with Joe Worsley switched to the openside.
D’Arcy will make his first start of the tour alongside Riki Flutey, who has been switched to outside centre.
Mike Blair has been named at scrum-half but faces a fitness test in the morning on the ankle injury which forced him to pull out of the squad for Saturday’s victory over Western Province.
For the moment, Williams and Fitzgerald start on the wings with Earls switched from outside centre to full-back.
British and Irish Lions (v Southern Kings):K Earls (Munster/Ireland); S Williams (Ospreys/Wales), R Flutey (Wasps/England), G D'Arcy (Leinster/Ireland), L Fitzgerald (Leinster/Ireland); J Hook (Ospreys/Wales), M Blair (Edinburgh/Scotland); A Sheridan (Sale/England), R Ford (Edinburgh/Scotland), E Murray (Northampton/Scotland); S Shaw (Wasps/England), D O'Callaghan (Munster/Ireland); N Hines (Perpignan/Scotland), J Worsley (Wasps/England), A Powell (Cardiff/Wales)
Replacements: M Rees (Scarlets/Wales), A Jones (Ospreys/Wales), T Croft (Leicester/England), D Wallace (Munster/Ireland), H Ellis (Leicester/England), R O'Gara (Munster/Ireland), U Monye (Harlequins/England
