SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - British and Irish Lions Tour Manager Gerald Davies announces the first Lions team of the 2009 tour of South Africa

Record ID: 452904

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - British and Irish Lions Tour Manager Gerald Davies announces the first Lions team of the 2009 tour of South Africa
  • Date: 29th May 2009
  • Summary: JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (MAY 28, 2009) (REUTERS) WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE MEDIA SEATED AND LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (English) LIONS HEAD COACH IAN MCGEECHAN, SAYING; "You know there's some combinations there and it was looking at different players playing together and see them first up. As you know we'll have everybody playing in these first three games and we want to try and make sure we can... we can sort of alternate the combinations." MORE OF THE MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) LIONS CAPTAIN PAUL O'CONNELL, SAYING; "Saturday is going to be the same. All the things we've been working on, with our defence coach, with our attack is going to be about trying to make steps in the right direction. We've been doing very well in training in terms of what we've been doing. Learned a lot I think in the last two weeks and it's about.. it's really about ourselves at this stage of the tour and sure we want to perform, we want to play it well and we want to score tries but it's all about making steps in the right direction and becoming a team." MORE OF THE MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) LIONS HEAD COACH IAN MCGEECHAN, SAYING "I think I'm excited about the two young centres as Paul had said and I think you know there's enough experience around to know what this tour asks of you and how to be, you know... put on the game we want to put on the field from day one,. Which, you know, that's the big ask for us now. We've now got to start working through the games." MORE OF THE MEDIA
  • Embargoed: 13th June 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA8WHH0CXN14HPALZPQVQFNJQ2R
  • Story Text: The British & Irish Lions Tour Manager Gerald Davies on Thursday (May 28) announced the first Lions team of the 2009 tour of South Africa.
    The team to play the Royal XV in Phokeng, near Rustenburg and will be led by Tour captain Paul O'Connell.
    Speaking at a news conference in Johannesburg Lions captain Paul O'Connell said the team must work towards becoming a team and said he was happy with what's been achieved at training thus far.
    "All the things we've been working on, with our defence coach, with our attack is going to be about trying to make steps in the right direction. We've been doing very well in training in terms of what we've been doing. Learned a lot I think in the last two weeks and it's about.. it's really about ourselves at this stage of the tour and sure we want to perform, we want to play it well and we want to score tries but it's all about making steps in the right direction and becoming a team." O'Connell said.
    Head coach Ian Mcgeechan expressed excitement about two young centres, namely Keith Earls and Jaime Roberts, being selected to play in the first game on the tour.
    "I think I'm excited about the two young centres as Paul had said and I think you know there's enough experience around to know what this tour asks of you and how to be, you know... put on the game we want to put on the field from day one,. Which, you know, that's the big ask for us now. We've now got to start working through the games," McGeechan said.
    The team selected for the match versus Royal XV on Saturday the 30th of May is as follows:
    Lee Byrne (Ospreys/Wales)
    Tommy Bowe (Ospreys/Wales)
    Keith Earls (Munster/Ireland)
    Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues/Wales)
    Shane Williams (Ospreys/Wales)
    Ronan O'Gara (Munster/Ireland)
    Mike Blair (Edinburgh/Scotland)
    Andy Powell (Cardiff Blues/Wales)
    Martyn Williams (Cardiff Blues/Wales)
    Joe Worsley (London Wasps/England)
    Paul O'Connell (Munster/Ireland) captain
    Simon Shaw (London Wasps/England)
    Adam Jones (Ospreys/Wales)
    Matthew Rees (Scarlets/Wales)
    Andrew Sheridan (Sales Sharks/England) Replacements:
    Lee Mears (Bath/England)
    Phil Vickery (London Wasps/England)
    Alun-Wyn Jones (Ospreys/Wales)
    Stephen Ferris (Ulster/Ireland)
    Mike Phillips (Ospreys/Wales)
    Stephen Jones (Scarlets/Wales)
    Riki Flutey (London Wasps/England)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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