British & Irish Lions

What do we get to the Melbourne Cup or Derby Day? That'll be 80,000 plus.

September 11 this year, if memory serves correctly, we had 100,000 MCG for an NFL game between San Fran and LA Rams, yeah? Did we not have 90,000 there for a game between the Wallabies and British Lions of Union? Did we not have 91,000 there for Game 2 in the State of Origin this year? which was a record rugby league crowd.

If we'd not have 94,199 of Boxing Day tests last year, which was a record and remains the biggest crowd ever in a single day of test cricket, I rest my case.

Beautifully done.

You've got your Freemans as well.

You've probably some of the Lions who are at the top, Joe Hayes, who sort of pick themselves.

But there's a middle tier of the squad that, needs to probably push forward as opposed to just bodies that churn around you know this is the squad time for those guys to really push forward and show us why you're in the squad and not just show us but like make england better don't show me shit like but go make england win

games There's definitely an element where I look at it and think, I wonder if fans felt the same when we were in squads, Coley, that were picked and they could almost, you know, do you look at them and were fans sort of felt the same? We're like, oh, you know, there's nothing really excites me about that squad, especially when we had a very settled squad.

I look forward to how the England team is going to play in the team selection.

And I do think, looking at this squad, one advantage maybe.

Do you remember when the Lions all came back and England were able to unleash a bench? Yes.

Basically, it was like Ellis Genge, Cowan Dickey, Will Stewart.

And they almost get full 80s out of him.

So it clearly seems the two guys from the Ospreys, for whatever reason, aren't trusted by the... by the team unless they don't have a choice, like for when Thomas was with the Lions and then got injured or whatever.

So I think, yeah, we need to find out who the answer is.

Whether we like the answer or not is another story, similar to we are definitely sticking with this playmaking 12 option regardless of whether it is the right thing.

They brought the bulk of their internationals with them to South Africa.

Some of them didn't play, but I think just integrating them back into the system and the Lions tour last year, It didn't help them at the start.

It took them a while to get going.

So look, to go to Claremont last week and on last Saturday and to score seven tries was the discord, I think.

You got to see all the lads there.

I imagine, look, just for you guys as a unit, it must have been an incredibly emotional weekend.

yeah, it just brings it all back and I think, you know, what happened on Friday with Hiran Andrews, the tragic, his tragic passing in France, the Lions were, they played La Rochelle at the weekend and he was found unresponsive in the spa area of a hotel in La Rochelle which was kind of rocked and shook everybody before the weekend's rugby kicked off so it just puts into perspective how, rugby is secondary here when things like that happens they made a decision to stay in France and play the game and they played Glasgow this week the Lions and they're in Wales the week after so incredibly difficult for them and it kind of of course with everything the build up to the Munster match and particularly playing against Racing it was Axel's 10 year anniversary that was in everyone's minds and But I think that happening at the weekend shook everybody in the rugby community and it was a tragic passing and we have to acknowledge and pass on our sympathies to his family as well and to the Lions rugby players.

I did that game on Saturday.