Rugby Union: JONNO'S JOB; Martin's the man to lead the Lions to glory

THE Lions are looking for the right leader to guide them through the Aussie rugby jungle this summer.

And I know the man to get them to the other side unscathed and triumphant.

I simply can't see anyone better equipped than Martin Johnson.

Just look at the job he has done with England since taking over in tricky circumstances. Add his leadership of Leicester - and the Lions in 1997 - and Jonno must be in pole position.

I knew he would make a terrific England captain before he received the baton from Lawrence Dallaglio. I'd seen him develop with Leicester and felt he had the right character and desire to succeed.

The one thing about Jonno is that he is reliable. He hardly ever has a poor game.

He is always in the thick of things when needed and his presence in the line-outs and scrums frightens opponents. He may have had one or two moments when the red mist came down, but you tell me a top rugby player - or any sportsman for that matter - who doesn't occasionally get angry. This is a contact sport, not synchronised swimming!

There are other guys in contention for the captaincy, like Keith Wood and David Young, but I reckon Jonno stands head and shoulders above them. He is the skipper of the most successful England side ever, the best team in the Northern Hemisphere right now.

And, with the help of his leadership, we have recently shown the Southern Hemisphere that England are now capable of beating them consistently.

As for the make-up of the squad itself, that is very much up in the air. With the Six Nations not finishing until next autumn, it throws up an interesting situation concerning how many Irish players will be picked.

The Six Nations has always been the stage on which the top players know they have to perform in order to get picked for Lions tours. So if you don't play many games in the tournament it must damage your chances.

Naturally, there are certain players who have already proved themselves. The likes of Keith Wood and Brian O'Driscoll should expect to get the phone call. But for the rest of the Irish lads in with a shout it must be a little worrying.

As for England, I will be very surprised if they don't fill a large majority of the places on the plane. The team could not have done any more.

We've won our games convincingly, and with style. It would be wrong to dismiss any of the players who have taken part in our four games. And you can add the names of many more who have been on the fringe of the squad.

Kyran Bracken, Matt Perry, Martin Corry, Jason Robinson and the like would comfortably get in most other teams, so why shouldn't they be considered by the Lions?

I certainly will be keeping my fingers and everything else crossed from now until the party is named on Wednesday.

It would be a dream come true to go to Australia with the Lions and it has been nice hearing the good things people in the game have been saying about me recently.

It would make my summer to get picked. I honestly believe we can give the Wallabies a real battle.

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