Inside Track: Farrell vindicated in his Lions team selection

Warren Gatland shocked the world of rugby – well, maybe not all of it, but a good part – when he left Brian O’Driscoll out of the Lions team to play in a final Test match in 2013.

This was the fourth Lions’ tour for a player regarded as Ireland’s greatest ever. He was not only expected to play against Australia but captain the side in the absence of the injured Sam Warburton and Paul O’Connell.

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Gatland, however, looked elsewhere, not only dropping O’Driscoll, but in naming his side, chose ten Welshmen on the first XV, with another in the match-day squad.

In taking up the Lions head coach post, he stepped back temporally from the same position with Wales, who he had led to Grand Slam success.

How the pendulum has swung. Back then, just over a decade ago, Wales were top dogs. Now, they can’t buy a win, part of their dreadful run overseen in the early stages by Gatland.

The New Zealander, who also had charge or the Ireland team at one time having commenced coaching in this country with Galwegians, can claim vindication for his decision to omit O’Driscoll. The Lions beat The Wallabies by a near record scorer, 41-16, giving them the series by 2-1.

There was a reminder of 2013 when the Lions team was announced for the first of this year’s Tests. Head coach is Andy Farrell, an Englishman, but for the past few years a successful coach to the Ireland team.

Farrell didn’t endear himself to a large section of his home country’s media when he named nine Ireland players on the team to face Joe Schmidt’s Australia last Saturday. In suggesting a make-up for the game, one of their number had included just five Irish.

All very similar to what happened 12 years ago, but while Farrell played much the same hand as Gatland, none of those who were admitted had anything near O’Driscoll’s class.

Take that, Farrell is entitled to say. The Lions won Saturday’s match 27-19, and are now odds-on to win the series.