It’s one of the hottest debate topics egg-chasing has to offer.
Given we live in something of a green goldfish bowl on these Irish shores, there’s no harm getting input from elsewhere. And so we have the HarpinOnRugby Lions Selector Panel, made up of one fan from each nation, with even the Irish panellist based abroad.
And it is that very same Irish panellist Mark Jackson who gives us his latest selection today.
With the season well under way and the Heino 2 games in , players are putting their hands up for selection with some others being sent to stand in the corner for lacklustre early season performances. Not too many changes to earlier selections but enough form players to include to make sure that they are being recognised for endeavours on the pitch . With people coming back from injury and others getting injured its a tricky time of year for selectors so just before the Autumn Internationals here’s the First Class Selection along with their Economy Class counterparts
First Class (Test XV)
15. Leigh Halfpenny ( steady rather than spectacular injuries to Kearney and Foden make him the standout selection)
14. Tommy Bowe ( Class personified in his brief appearances back from injury still best all round wing for me )
13. Brian O'Driscoll ( Try vs Munster rolled back the years but a position well up for grabs)
12. Jonathan Davies ( Jamie Roberts still not fully fit so Davies has done enough to keep the 12 shirt , just )
11. George North ( Poor showing vs Leinster but still enough early season form for test berth)
10. Jonathan Sexton ( Not firing on all cylinders but all round game still gets him the pivot )
9. Danny Care ( Phillips indiscretions aside , Care is buzzing bringing backs and forwards into play well for his club)
8. Jamie Heaslip ( Has upped his workrate and has been one of Leinster’s better performers so far )
7. Justin Tipuric ( Bit of a bolter but has been impressive for a good Ospreys resurgence , before last Sunday obv)
6. Stephen Ferris ( Even if Lydiate was fit , Fez would be my 6 , wrap him in cotton wool , he is a game changer)
5. Paul O' Connell ( Showed more in 60 mins vs Edinburgh than most other 2nds rows do in a season . Still the yardstick for locks in this part of the world)
4. Courtney Lawes ( A defensive beast with subtle skills , improving all the time )
3. Dan Cole ( Excellent season so far , offer more round the park than Adam Jones or Mike Ross especially in defence where he is turning over ball every game )
2. Richardt Strauss ( Now he is officially eligible he goes straight into the Test XV , great ball carrier good in tight and excellent at turning over ball on the ground )
1. Joe Marler ( With Healy and Jenkins not showing enough Marler's improved tight play allied with his loose skills get him the nod )
Economy Class
15. Stuart Hogg 14. Alex Cuthbert 13. Jonathan Joseph 12. Manu Tuilagi 11. Tim Visser 10 . Dan Biggar 9. Mike Phillips 8. Dave Denton 7. Sam Warburton 6. Ryan Jones 5. Ian Evans 4. Richie Gray 3. Adam Jones 2. Dylan Hartley 1. Cian Healy
Thats my two cents for the season so far , as always great to get feedback on the selections and see others thoughts , till next month rugby people .
Mark
Mark Jackson (@markusjacksonus) is an Irishman living in London, a lover of this game we call Rugby along with Gaelic Football and NFL (All Hail The New York Giants), having played it for fun and money in many countries around the globe, am now earning a crust coaching, hopefully inspiring and passing along some knowledge gained to the next generation of players.
We take the four panellists’ selections and put them together to form the HoR Composite Lions XV. Mark’s choices this week have really shaken up the pack – follow this link to take a look.
Next week, we go back to our English panellist Rich Church-Keen.
