Chosen as captain by his father, Owen Farrell faced more challenges than he anticipated while leading the British & Irish Lions to a narrow victory over the First Nations & Pasifika XV (FNP) in his first full match during the tour of Australia.
Like many of the 30,000 fans at Docklands Stadium on Tuesday, the former England captain likely thought they would secure an easy win after the Lions jumped to a 14-0 lead just 11 minutes into the game.
However, things became much tougher when Scotland winger Darcy Graham left early due to a leg injury. The opponents fought back fiercely, nearly stealing the win before ultimately losing 24-19.
Farrell was not to blame for this struggle; he engaged in an early confrontation to set the tone for his team, contributed to several of the Lions’ four tries, and defended vigorously as if he had something to prove.
“I enjoyed being out there,” Farrell shared. “It’s been pretty good so far, and there’s plenty more ahead. I’m happy to have played a small part in it all.”
Even though Farrell has a lot of experience with the Lions, his selection by his father and head coach Andy sparked some debate for several reasons.
He was stepping in to fill the role of fullback after Elliot Daly, but he hadn’t played a Test match since 2023 and had just come back from an injury-filled season with Racing 92.
Now, it seems likely that Farrell will be involved in the series against the Wallabies, even with strong competition for positions in the midfield.
At the post-match press conference, Andy sat next to Farrell and was asked to evaluate his son’s performance, giving him careful praise.
He mentioned the precise, left-footed chip that set up Jamie Osborne’s first of two tries and highlighted “some nice touches on the ball.”
“But there are always things to work on,” he added.
Head coach Farrell faces several selection challenges ahead of the second Test, as Darcy Graham and winger Mack Hansen may not be available to play at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The Lions aim to clinch the series after winning the opening match in Brisbane 27-19.
Lock Joe McCarthy is also dealing with a foot injury.
There was some worry about Marcus Smith, who left the field due to a head injury just minutes after coming in from the bench. However, Andy Farrell confirmed that Smith passed his head injury test. Farrell felt good about the returns of fullback Blair Kinghorn and Garry Ringrose, both of whom came through without any issues.
“If you can’t get excited for what’s ahead, then we’re all in the wrong place,” head coach Farrell stated. “To me, this is the biggest game of our lives for every one of us in this squad.”
