Maro Itoje has been named captain of the British and Irish Lions for this summer time’s tour of Australia.
Itoje, 30, turns into the second Englishman to captain the Lions within the skilled period, following Martin Johnson who led the vacationers in each 1997 and 2001. Itoje was confirmed as Lions skipper at an occasion at London’s O2 Area on Thursday.
Itoje emerged because the frontrunner to steer Andy Farrell’s facet after Eire’s Caelan Doris picked up a shoulder damage in Leinster’s Champions Cup defeat to Northampton Saints on Saturday. The damage noticed Doris require surgical procedure, with Leinster fearing it was a “critical” setback.
Itoje is a two-time Lion already, having performed towards the All Blacks in 2017 and South Africa in 2021. And now he’ll captain the group as they search for their first collection win towards the Wallabies since 2013.
He has loved a superb 2024-25 marketing campaign and skippered each Saracens and England. The 2025 Six Nations was his first championship answerable for England and he impressed within the position, whereas additionally sustaining good kind.
For thus lengthy, this appeared to be a two-horse race for the Lions captaincy. Whereas the likes of Owen Farrell and Jamie George had been talked about, Doris and Itoje had been extensively seen to be the frontrunners.
Lions coach Farrell is on secondment from Eire for this summer time’s collection, and one among his final acts as Eire coach earlier than the sabbatical was to select Doris to captain his group within the 2024 November Exams. Doris carried this position into the 2025 championship however Itoje’s inventory rose in the course of the Six Nations after a collection of eye-catching performances.
And it is Itoje who joins an elite group to captain the Lions. The skilled period noticed Johnson lead the Lions to South Africa in 1997 after which to Australia in 2001. Brian O’Driscoll captained the vacationers towards the All Blacks in 2005, Paul O’Connell took on the honour for the journey to South Africa in 2009 and Sam Warburton skippered them towards Australia in 2013 and New Zealand in 2017. Final time round in South Africa, it was Wales nice Alun Wyn Jones.
Evaluation from ESPN’s Tom Hamilton:
The minute Leinster and Eire began fretting about Doris’ damage, it meant just one factor: it was going to be Itoje’s 12 months.
You think about Farrell will reveal on Thursday how shut a name this was going to be and for thus lengthy, it seemed like this was going to be nailed on for Doris.
Farrell giving him the Eire captaincy in November appeared to be an audition for this summer time’s honour, however Doris’ kind dipped within the Six Nations and he had hassle at instances speaking with officers. That means to get contained in the referee’s ear on the proper time has shifted the stability of previous collection — simply have a look at how Sam Warburton managed to overturn Romain Poite’s name within the closing throes of the 2017 third Check in Auckland.
Steve Borthwick’s choice to select Itoje as England captain was a shock. Jamie George had executed an impressive job, however Borthwick was trying to transfer his squad into the following period. Itoje had executed effectively captaining Saracens and ever since his breakthrough in 2014, it all the time gave the impression to be a query of “when” relatively than “if” he’d ever skipper England.
Itoje obtained some criticism from former England coach Eddie Jones over his management credentials, however he was distinctive within the position. And marrying that, he managed to push his personal private kind to even larger ranges.
Doris’ damage was extremely unlucky and you are feeling for him. He missed the 2021 tour with concussion, and this shoulder damage couldn’t have come at a worse time. It is now Itoje’s second and he’ll do an impressive job.
There’s an terrible lot of hullabaloo that comes with the Lions captaincy, and he’ll shake roughly 1.2 million arms over the following three months, however when it comes right down to main his facet towards the Wallabies, he’ll do it by instance and well-judged moments of encouragement.
– British & Irish Lions fixtures for Australia tour
– NEWS: Eire captain Caelan Doris to endure surgical procedure
– British and Irish Lions squad announcement: The way it occurred
