Andy Farrell will be without George Martin for the upcoming British & Irish Lions tour, as preparations for the summer are plagued by fitness concerns. Farrell’s full squad will be confirmed on Thursday during an event at London’s O2 Arena.
Not available for selection is Leicester ace Martin, who, according to The Daily Mail, hasn’t recovered from the injuries which have caused him problems throughout the campaign. The 23-year-old has struggled with knee and shoulder problems throughout the year and alongside sitting out the Lions tour, Martin will also be absent for England’s summer trips to Argentina and the United States.
Martin hasn’t been fit since coming off in the second half of England’s win over France in the Six Nations three months ago. But, he isn’t the only fitness headache currently concerning Farrell ahead of Thursday’s announcement.
Caelan Doris is the other major absentee, with the Irishman having gone under the knife for surgery on a shoulder problem, meaning he’s almost certainly going to be out of the running. That does open the door for England captain Maro Itoje, who has emerged as the overwhelming favourite to be named as Lions skipper.
But it’s behind the scrum where Farrell’s biggest concerns currently lie, as Mick Hansen also joined the injury list. The wing back has already been ruled out of Connacht’s final two games of the season after picking up an ankle problem, with a return date of at least five weeks having been mooted.
Duhan van der Merwe is another doubt in the back-line, with the Scottish international also suffering from an ankle injury. Even if he is back in contention, a lack of game time could force Farrell to look elsewhere. Not that there are too many options though, as England duo Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and George Furbank are both sidelined, while Scot Blair Kinghorn could recover from injury, but would have to join the squad late anyway because of his club commitments with Toulouse.
Midfield isn’t without its own set of problems either, as Ollie Lawrence is a no after undergoing Achilles surgery, Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones are carrying knocks, and Bundee Aki is only just returning to fitness.
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