Charlie Elliott: My British and Irish Lions squad for the first Test vs Wallabies

The British and Irish Lions head into their first Test against Australia in Brisbane with some momentum.

Unbeaten on tour so far, they’ve looked sharper with each outing, culminating in a ruthless 48-0 dismantling of an AU-NZ Invitational XV last weekend.

Now it is time for the games that matter most against the Wallabies.

Charlie Elliott has named his 23-man squad for the opener, with a mix of players who have forced their way into the squad with some good performances on tour and some who have been nailed-on from the start.

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15. Hugo Keenan

This pick entirely depends on Blair Kinghorn’s injury status. If the Scot is ready to play, then he should start.

It seems as if he may not quite be ready for the first Test, which leaves Hugo Keenan as the only other out-and-out fullback available.

Marcus Smith could slot in and has shown flashes in a few of the warmup games, but it makes more sense to play someone natural in the position.

Keenan was good against the AU-NZ Invitational XV and looks to be peaking at the right time, following an illness earlier on in the tour.

14. Tommy Freeman

Freeman is surely one of the first names on the teamsheet after a stellar season and a decent few games so far on tour.

The Northampton Saint is brilliant out wide and has pretty much everything you could ask for from a winger.

Mack Hansen is a close second, and Duhan van der Merwe’s poor Lions form has played him out of a possible shirt, so Freeman is the pick that makes the most sense.

13. Huw Jones

12. Sione Tuipulotu

Centre is a very tough one and Farrell may opt for an all-Ireland pair, but if I were picking the team, then I would go for Huwipulotu. While they haven’t played together on tour yet, they are a great partnership and complement each other extremely well.

None of the newly tested duos have set the world alight, and that leaves it as either Jones and Tuipulotu or Garry Ringrose and Bundee Aki.

The latter wouldn’t be the end of the world and are certainly a good pair, but I would back the two Scots to be better suited to the task at hand.

11. James Lowe

One of the least controversial picks on here, Lowe has made the 11 shirt his own, and it would be a massive shock if he isn’t to start the first Test, especially given van der Merwe’s form on tour.

10. Finn Russell

Russell is a generational talent and is still a fair way ahead of Fin and Marcus Smith, as well as Owen Farrell. Another that is a shoo-in, so doesn’t need lots of justification.

9. Jamison Gibson-Park

Gibson-Park is closer to Alex Mitchell than Russell and his fly-half counterparts, but again, this is a pretty nailed-on position and one that the Irishman shouldn’t lose for at least the first Test.

1. Ellis Genge

Prop is an interesting one because it can be debated whether it is better to have your best players on the bench to bring fresh physicality later on in the match.

For that reason, Genge being benched wouldn’t be surprising. I have opted for him to start because the scrum looks much better with him on the pitch than off it, and given the Lions’ struggles early on in games this tour, Andy Farrell starting his best XV for this first Test is crucial.

2. Dan Sheehan

Even without Luke Cowan-Dickie’s injury, this is another nailed-on pick. The go-to for Ireland has been Sheehan starting and Ronan Kelleher coming off the bench, and Farrell won’t deviate from that for such a big game.

Sheehan has looked very good and has shown his mobility on plenty of occasions. He will be a big player in this first game.

3. Tadhg Furlong

Similarly to loosehead, this pick depends on whether Farrell wants to start strong or finish stronger. Like with Genge, I am opting for the starting strong approach and picking Furlong.

Will Stuart and even Finlay Bealham can make cases for playing, especially Stuart with his England partner starting on the other side of this lineup.

But Furlong is just about the best of the bunch and would be a deserved starter.

4. Maro Itoje

Captain and a guaranteed starter. No point dwelling on this pick. A brilliant second row and a strong leader for the side, who has helped in some of the tougher moments so far.

5. Joe McCarthy

Form is being prioritised over reputation for this one. If you’d asked anyone before the tour, they would have had Tadhg Beirne as the starter here, but his performances in Australia have failed to impress, given his evident quality.

McCarthy, on the other hand, has brought lots of physicality and size to the second row, which seems to have benefited the Lions.

Farrell may not want to go for an entirely physical approach and if not, will likely give this shirt to Beirne. I would rather see a player who has earnt their shirt in this position though, which is why McCarthy has been picked.

6. Ollie Chessum

Chessum is another who has played himself into a shirt, both at the back end of the Premiership season and on tour.

He only lost against Bath in the Premiership whilst at Leicester Tigers last season, such was his immense impact on the side. That has continued into the Lions, where he has shown plenty of power, size and work rate at blindside.

Also, with some versatility, being able to play lock, he ticks all the boxes.

7. Jac Morgan

People doubted Morgan’s inclusion into the original squad, believing that he could only succeed in a weak Wales team that was often under the cosh in games.

The flanker has silenced those critics and has arguably been even better in Lions red than he was for his nation, still bringing the same intensity and desire that he has shown on many occasions for Wales.

This is the most competitive position with Josh van der Flier, Tom Curry and Ben Earl up for selection, but Morgan’s inclusion is massively deserved.

8. Jack Conan

Conan is the only out-and-out No.8 in the entire squad, and although Ben Earl has impressed and could certainly do a job there, starting a Test match is a different animal.

Barring a huge surprise, Conan will play and rightly so.

16. Ronan Kelleher

As mentioned in Sheehan’s selection, there is a clear hierarchy of hookers, which Kelleher falls neatly into the ‘replacements’ option.

17. Andrew Porter

Potential starter, but a big risk given that he has a habit of getting punished a bit too much at scrum time when properly officiated.

It is better not to risk that from the off, but Porter starting wouldn’t be the end of the world, as he is a very good loosehead.

18. Will Stuart

Tossup with Furlong, but Stuart may be better suited off the bench. Again, could start, and there would be no complaints from me.

19. Tadhg Beirne

A perfect bench replacement given that he can cover the second and back row, and can be interchangeable with Ollie Chessum.

As mentioned in McCarthy’s selection, he would have been an almost guaranteed starter going into the tour, but has somewhat disappointed.

His reputation and quality speak for themselves, and Farrell could do a lot worse than starting him.

20. Henry Pollock

Pollock is a proper livewire and the best possible player to bring on to spark something in the latter stages of the match. Versatile as a back row as well, which only adds to his repertoire.

One can only imagine the type of celebration he would do should he get on the scoresheet against the Wallabies.

21. Ben Earl

6-2 or 5-3 is the big question regarding bench-splits and one that will decide the 21-23 shirts. For me, there is enough versatility not to need three backs on the bench, so I have opted for 6-2.

In this scenario, Ben Earl deserves this shirt after playing well so far, just not quite well enough to start. A very good and dangerous option off the bench, though.

22. Alex Mitchell

Straightforward, given Tomos Williams’ injury and Ben White’s selection. The second scrum-half in the pecking order.

23. Owen Farrell

Possibly the most controversial pick of them all. Farrell was a late inclusion after Elliot Daly’s injury, but I think he will be on the bench for the first test.

He brings a wealth of experience that Daly has left behind, has been in this situation plenty of times before and would be a cool and composed presence coming off the bench, either to see out a game or when chasing.

Marcus Smith could fill the gap of fly-half/back, but lacks Farrell’s experience.

By Charlie Elliott