Might one of the two horses in the race to captain the Lions have fallen at the final hurdle?
Ireland number eight Caelan Doris picked up a shoulder injury in Leinster’s Champions Cup semi-final defeat by Northampton this weekend, putting his touring hopes in danger.
Maro Itoje may well have earned the accolade ahead of Doris regardless, but with such uncertainty over his rival for the post now, the way seems even more clear for the second row.
The 30-year-old, who had not been either his club or country’s regular skipper until the start of this season, would be completing a captaincy clean sweep on his third Lions tour.
“I would agree with it going to Maro,” former England and British and Irish Lions scrum-half Matt Dawson told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“There are a couple of absolute fundamentals with Lions tour captains – first and foremost they have to be in the team and for me he is, without a shadow of a doubt.
“Secondly, he has to be held in that regard, not just by the coaches, but also by his team-mates as well. The players have to look at their captain and think ‘this guy is the man’.
“Thirdly, for Maro specifically, he has blossomed beautifully this season for England.
“He has gone from being a player who was a certainty to be in the team, but was a bit short of the form of his early 20s and a little bit too ill disciplined, to being right in the groove.
“The captaincy has given him a new lease of life and he is ready to step into the role for the Lions.”
Shane Horgan, who toured New Zealand alongside Dawson with the 2005 Lions, agrees.
“I think Itoje is the frontrunner,” he said.
“You need a different type of charisma to be Lions captain because within your own nation, you can get 20 caps, build relationships with the team, become a senior player and then captain. There is none of that with the Lions.
“There are lots of players you won’t have a relationship with at all – you have to be 100% respected and have a bit of an aura.”
