Biggar has made that 10 shirt his own now | Jeremy Guscott

WARREN Gatland will have been pleased with most of what he saw yesterday, but the shoulder injury to captain Alun Wyn Jones is a huge blow.

Jones will not fly out with the squad but still has a chance of getting fit for the Test matches. We were in a similar situation on tour in 1997 when Martin Johnson didn't play for the first two weeks after bringing an injury with him. It wasn't so much his captaincy we needed, it was more him as a player and I think this situation is the same with Alun Wyn.

There's a lot of competition in that second row; if he does fly out later in the tour it will not be because he is captain but more for his ability as a player. The Wales captain will know his body, know his fitness and how much prepara- tion he needs for the Test matches. Missing the warm-up games would not be a huge problem, it's just fine-tuning for the Test matches.

Justin Tipuric's injury will also be of concern to Gatland, but otherwise it was a good first run out.

Gatland is looking at his combinations, starting with the rows throughout the pack, then the half-backs, midfield and back three. I think clear as day the guys that did themselves big favours yesterday were fly-half Dan Biggar, centre Robbie Henshaw, prop Tadgh Furlong and No.8 Jack Conan.

Scotland wing Duhan van der Merwe would have been up there as well if he had slipped a couple of passes. He tends to hold onto the ball too long when he's tackled; if he has his hands free to offload he ought to do it. That is the next step in his progression. At some stage it will lead to a missed opportunity to score and he doesn't want that to happen in the Test matches.

All the players did what they were asked to do and a bit more. Biggar looked really composed, he was clever and inventive with his kicking and looked to put pace in the game.

Biggar was the No.10 of the Six Nations and he's certainly carried on where he left off. I think it will be hard for Owen Farrell to shift him from that 10 jersey. The only way Farrell can shift him – because I feel it is not the other way around – is to put in some unbelievable performances which we know he is more than capable of as a big Test match animal.

I did think that this would be more a workout for the defence to find their lungs and feet and get their defensive shape in order.

They looked solid enough, although Japan breached their line once with Kazuki Himeno's try which was a soft giveaway from the back of a lineout. Taulupe Faletau missed the tackle that allowed Japan to build momentum and go over from five metres out. It was sloppy play and must be better.

A big work-on for the Lions is their aggression levels. The way that Tadhg Beirne ran onto the ball for his try is how all players should be running onto the ball all the time against South Africa – whether there's a gap or a player in front of them. If they don't they will get hit back.

To stand any chance of beating South Africa the Lions have to win the collisions. The best way to win collisions is to target the edges of the body, unless you are running at pace and feel stronger than that person waiting to smash nine bells out of you.

I would like to see more energy and aggression from the carriers next week and I'm sure Warren and the coaches will be looking for the same to be able to compete with South Africa.

The aggression in the Lions pack was around 6.5 out of 10 which will not be enough. The South African pack, even without a few injured heavy-hitters, has some heft and massive aggression so that area must improve. As does the timing of the runs. We saw in the first half a few over-runs which are just down to the players getting used to each other as they form new partnerships – but one of rugby's golden rules is give yourself more time than you think.

At least then you've got a chance – if you get too far ahead you're out of the game and could even give a penalty way for obstruction. At this level the players have to get it right and the quicker they can do it the better because they will need to pose more of a threat.

Other bits weren't perfect either. It didn't matter in this game, but Courtney Lawes dropping the ball going over the line could be very costly later in the tour and it's rare to see Conor Murray getting charged down.

Outside Biggar, Henshaw looked keen at 13, Aki did his job at 12 and Josh Adams' try was a piece of world class finishing – he'd beaten the Japanese winger before he got the ball with his inside line.

We'll learn more as this tour goes on. Grand master Gatland is putting his pieces in position to start that first Test. It's unfair to start picking that side until you've seen all the players, but the good news is that injuries aside no one has put themselves out of contention on this performance, they all put their hands up.

The over-running of the ball is just over exuberance, but the very best players can contain that energy and control it. The closer they get to the Test matches the more they have to be in control.

A lot of teams can get caught narrow these days if the winger comes up looking to intercept or block that wide pass. Japan got round there a few times and while most wingers can get five or ten metres, someone like Cheslin Kolbe in that space will make 20.

We've seen worse from these pretour games – Argentina in 2005 was awful – and it is a good marker for the Lions to contain a team that was lethal in the last World Cup.

We'll see new combinations next week against the Golden Lions and they must increase their physicality carrying into the collisions and nail their timing in the backs.