Clive's wrong to back Jonny come lately

JASON LEONARD

FORMER LION

ONE of the key elements in any Lions tour - and I was privileged to take part in three - is the belief that everyone starts from scratch. No one gets special treatment.

This is vital to break down barriers and bring players from four different countries together under the same banner.

That is why I am so surprised that Sir Clive Woodward, the Lions head coach for the New Zealand tour, is giving Jonny Wilkinson extra time to get fit.

I am conscious of the fact that Clive has never been involved in a winning Lions test series. He was part of the 1980 side beaten in South Africa and the 1983 squad walloped in New Zealand.

Consequently, he has no real idea of what makes a successful touring Lions side tick. It is hugely important for every player to feel that they are all standing on that first rung of the selection ladder before the tour starts and everything is possible.

The problem with saying that Jonny can take as long as he wants to get fit is that it could cause a rift.

It may not sit very well with players from other countries who have made the tour and now feel that someone else is getting special treatment.

It could make it harder to break down the prejudices that are always present when you bring so many players from different countries together.

Other Lions squad members could ask the question: Why is he being treated different to us?

This is a dangerous game for Clive to be playing and if he had said that Jonny was fit to tour or that he wasn't going to go then I would have said "fair play, Clive, that's a brave shout."

Leaving the door open and making a special case for one player is something I do not agree with when it comes to a Lions tour.

You can't tell a player to turn up when he likes for such an important tour and that's why it could cause dissent.

On the 2001 tour, a barrier was created between the midweek team and the Test side in the week of the first match with Australia.

The midweek players had completed their final run-out for their match the next day when it was decided to turn them into 'Australia' - and give the supposedly unnamed Test side a training session.

That was detrimental because the midweekers had been told nothing had been decided yet.

Patently, that wasn't the case!

David Young was very honoured to be captaining the midweek team and Australia in the same training session.

Having been involved with Clive at international level, I know about his psychological ploys and by stating now that only two English players would be in the Lions Test XV for a match if it was played today is an example of how he likes to operate.

It's a fact that on every Lions tour, somebody will come through as a surprise player in the Test side and you cannot predict anything this far from the first match with the All Blacks at the end of June.

One man who will be a key figure in the battle up front with the All Blacks is Julian White, the Leicester prop, who is coming back from a neck injury.

Julian is a phenomenal scrummager and eats the opposition with his power at the scrums.

He takes them apart and New Zealand are perceived as having a weakness in this area which the Lions would like to exploit.

The other two tight-head props, Matt Stevens of England and Ireland's John Hayes get around the park more and will know that the scrums should not be too much of a problem.

What Clive has done in Julian's case is take some of the pressure off by naming him in the squad despite that injury problem. Julian can get on with his rugby knowing that he will be on the plane to New Zealand.

That will give him a real boost.

I know people will be talking about the age of some of the England players like Neil Back, Lawrence Dallaglio and Richard Hill but these players have tremendous experience and have been selected on merit.

They will stand toe-to-toe with the All Blacks and refuse to take a backward step, which is what you need in New Zealand.

Despite my reservations about the way Clive has handled the Jonny situation, I believe the Lions are equipped to win the series because this All Blacks outfit aren't as impressive as in previous years.

Clive will ensure this is the best prepared Lions squad we have ever seen and even the smallest detail will have been examined.

If we can ensure that the Jonny issue doesn't create any unwanted divisions then we have a great chance of coming back with a Test series triumph.

With 44 players - 45 if Jonny goes - we certainly have enough bodies to do the job.

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