0
By Adrian Warren,
AAP
Updated June 10, 2013, 1:22 pm
A feisty NSW-Qld Combined Country side are primed for a huge defensive effort as they seek to avoid the role of sacrificial rugby lambs against the British and Irish Lions on Tuesday.
Physical size and time together loom as major areas of disadvantage for the Country combination, who go into the clash at Newcastle's Hunter Stadium after just two training sessions and a captain's run.
Country suffered a blow on Monday, when their only Test representative, one-cap Wallaby flanker Beau Robinson, was ruled out after suffering a head knock in the Queensland Reds' loss to the Lions on Saturday.
Coached by former Wallaby prop Cam Blades, who played in a winning Australia A team against the Lions in 2001, Country will field eight players currently attached to Super Rugby franchises.
"We need to be dominant in defence. If they get a little bit of a rumble on it will make life pretty difficult for us," Blades told AAP.
"They are a massive physical side and we need to stop them before they get going."
Country captain and Rebels back rower Tim Davidson nominated attitude as the key for his team.
"You can't afford to go in with a defeatist attitude because I think they will just sense it and the floodgates (will) open," Davidson said.
"All I've said to the boys is that we've got nothing to lose, they've got everything to lose."
The Lions named an imposing three-quarter line, reuniting the highly successful 2009 centre combination of Jamie Roberts and Brian O'Driscoll for the first time on tour and selecting giant Welsh wingers George North and Alex Cuthbert.
With their two specialist five-eighths Owen Farrell and Jonathan Sexton rested, Lions coach Warren Gatland has switched fullback Stuart Hogg into the No.10 shirt.
"Thats obviously an opportunity, for us, but he's an international Test standard 15, so I'm sure he'll adjust to that pretty well, " Blades said.
Teams:-
NSW-Qld Combined Country: Nathan Trist (Sydney Uni), Alex Gibbon (Southern Districts, Sydney), Lewie Catt (NSW Country), Tareta-Junior Siakisini (Qld Country), Tom Cox (Brumbies), Angus Roberts (Rebels), Michael Snowden (Force), Tim Davidson (capt, Rebels), Jarrad Butler (Reds), Richard Stanford (Eastern Suburbs, Sydney), Blake Enever (Reds), Phoenix Battye (Force), Tim Metcher (Southern Districts, Sydney), Josh Mann-Rae (Brumbies), Haydn Hirsimaki (Qld Country). Res: Dylan Evans (NSW Country), Rikki Abraham (Qld Country), Rory Arnold (Qld Country), Trent Dyer (Rebels), Adam McCormack (NSW Country), Shaun McCarthy (Qld Country), Dale Ahwang (Qld Country).
Lions: Sean Maitland, Alex Cuthbert, Brian O'Driscoll (capt), Jamie Roberts, George North, Stuart Hogg, Conor Murray, Jamie Heaslip, Justin Tipuric, Sean O'Brien, Ian Evans, Richie Gray, Dan Cole, Richard Hibbard, Alex Corbisiero. Ben: Rory Best, Ryan Grant, Matt Stevens, Alun Wyn Jones, Toby Faletau, Mike Phillips, Jonathan Davies, Leigh Halfpenny.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/spo...-lions-at-bay/
How dare they treat the Country team with such contempt?? When was the last time Hogg played 10, under 9's