Highlanders v British and Irish Lions: Key talking points for Dunedin duel
By Emma Thurston
Last Updated: 14/06/17 1:53pm
The British and Irish Lions' schedule is unrelenting and next is a meeting with the Highlanders on Tuesday in Dunedin, live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 8am.
Sam Warburton returns to captain the touring party who will be facing a side that have won 10 out of their 14 Super Rugby fixtures so far season.
The Highlanders are coming in off the back of a loss to the Crusaders and will be without Ben Smith and Aaron Smith.
All Blacks Liam Coltman, fly-half Lima Sopoaga and winger Waisake Naholo are all available and selected in Tony Brown's starting side.
After the triumph in Christchurch can the Lions continue on the right road? We examine some of the key talking points…
Can this group of Lions find their clinical edge?
One of the key features of the opening three matches for the Lions has been their inability to take chances when they have presented themselves.
When Warren Gatland announced his squad back in April one of the areas that stuck out was the amount of pazazz that we might see from those selected but so far more tries have been squandered rather than scored.
Of course a key part of developing this clinical edge is time together on the training field and it's fair to say that squad's time has been limited to date. However, improvements must be seen from this point forward.
Ben Te'o's final pass to Liam Williams midway through the second half against the Crusaders was a prime case of what must be eradicated from their performances and those selected this time out cannot fall into the same trap.
There's no question that the Lions have the ability and now that every player has had time in the jersey nerves cannot be a factor.
Precision must be the order of the day because to beat the All Blacks you need more than just a rock solid boot off the kicking tee, as Ireland highlighted when they prevailed in Chicago.
Make or break time for individuals
For the 23 selected to face the Highlanders this is could be their last true chance to force themselves into Test reckoning, especially those that are starting at the Forsyth Barr Stadium.
There are a number that will feel that that need to redeem themselves after indifferent opening outings and perhaps none more so than winger Jack Nowell.
Many had the Exeter Chief down as a Test starter ahead of the tour but defensive frailties and uncharacteristic errors saw him emerge out of the match against the Blues with work to do.
Dan Biggar's opening outing was cut short due to a failed HIA. However, having passed all of the concussion protocols he's ready for some vital game time and knows that he's got a challenge ahead of him to turn Gatland's head.
"Johnny and Owen deserve to be just a fraction ahead at the moment," said Biggar of his battle with Sexton and Farrell.
"That is me being brutally honest. But my nature is not to want that to happen, my nature is to close that gap and put some pressure on the two of them.
"That's the chance I have on Tuesday night, but that's not my mindset. It's not going to be 'I've got to do this, this and this to put pressure on Johnny and Owen'. It's going to be about what I can do for the team and hopefully that comes off."
The second row is an area that we've all spoken about for months and the decision-making doesn't look to be getting any easier for the Lions management.
Courtney Lawes will be aware of his need to continue his stellar form, while a great deal of focus will be on Sam Warburton after Sean O'Brien's outing against the Crusaders.
Any slip-up may consign individuals to midweek spots for the rest of the tour while a flyer could push them into Test contention.
Momentum is now key for the Lions
The loss against the Blues immediately kick-started a spiral of negativity around the touring party and having kept the Super Rugby leaders quiet it's vital that the Lions consolidate that performance with another victory.
While the touring party will be endeavouring not to pay too much attention to the external noise that's being directed their way, the environment in New Zealand makes that extremely difficult.
In Australia four years ago the Lions were able to arrive quite inconspicuously in some areas and keep themselves to themselves. However there's absolutely no chance of that in New Zealand.
As a result any mid-week bumps in the road will be felt and could spill forwards and disrupt their course towards the Tests.
A victory over the Highlanders - with a performance to match - would continue to keep the squad on a positive course and set them up nicely for their clash with the Maori All Blacks.
Highlanders: 15 Richard Buckman, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Teihorangi Walden, 11 Tevita Li, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Kayne Hammington; 1 Daniel Lienert-Brown, 2 Liam Coltman, 3 Siate Tokolahi, 4 Alex Ainley, 5 Jack Hemopo, 6 Gareth Evans, 7 Dillon Hunt, 8 Luke Whitelock (c).
Replacements: 16 Greg Pleasants-Tate, 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Siosiua Halanukonuka, 19 Josh Dickson, 20 James Lentjes, 21 Josh Renton, 22 Marty Banks, 23 Patrick Osborne.
British & Irish Lions: 15 Jared Payne, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Tommy Seymour, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Rhys Webb; 1 Joe Marler, 2 Rory Best, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 4 Courtney Lawes, 5 Iain Henderson, 6 James Haskell, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 8 CJ Stander.
Replacements: 16 Ken Owens, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Alun Wyn Jones, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Greig Laidlaw, 22 Owen Farrell, 23 Elliot Daly.