Scotland’s leading players could find their opportunities on this year’s British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand limited if there are no Scottish voices in the combined side’s coaching team, according to Andy Irvine, the former Scotland full-back who has extensive experience of how such tours operate.
Irvine was on three Lions tours as a player, was chairman of the tour to South Africa in 2009 and manager in Australia four years ago. He is still one of Scotland’s two representatives on the Lions management committee.
Gregor Townsend, the Glasgow head coach, and Jason O’Halloran, the Scotland attack coach, were approached by the Lions coach Warren Gatland, who had previously said he wanted representatives of all four home nations in his backroom team. Both turned down the invitation to be involved. “I think it probably would have helped had we had someone on the coaching staff,” said Irvine. “I’d like to think we’ll still have a reasonable hearing, but there’s no doubt that, if you’re a formal selector on the coaching team, it is bound to have an impact.”
Despite his reservations, Irvine said that Stuart Hogg, the Glasgow full back who was in the Lions squad in 2013 but was not chosen for the Test team, is now at the front of the queue in his position. “If the team was picked tomorrow, he would not only be in the squad, he’s be in the Test side,” said Irvine. “He’s in a very comeptitive position as Rob Kearney [Ireland] and Leigh Halfpenny [Wales] are still playing, and they were ahead of him on the last tour. I personally believe he has leapfrogged them.”
Irvine named Finn Russell as one of a number of Scottish Lions contenders. “The opposition is pretty fierce, but Finn will be there or thereabouts,” he said. “A lot depends on how Scotland go in the Six Nations.”