A strong England does not necessarily equal a strong British & Irish Lions. Look at 2005, the last time the Lions went down to New Zealand, as they will do next summer.
They were world champions back then. Their vaunted svengali Sir Clive Woodward was in charge. And it was an utter shambles, as they were summarily dispatched by the Dan Carter-inspired All Blacks.
Now, all of a sudden – and for the first time since then – England are a team to believe in again.
Are the portents better for the 2017 Lions because of it? The emergence of Maro Itoje, the maturing of Owen Farrell, and the redemption of Chris Robshaw and James Haskell suggests they must be.
But perhaps that misses the point of England’s 3-0 win over Australia this month, which was given its gloss with Saturday’s 44-40 win in Sydney.
More British & Irish Lions
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The clean sweep, at the end of a gruelling domestic campaign and following a glorious Six Nations grand slam, deserves to stand alone as an enduring achievement. The first time the Wallabies had been on the end of such a hiding at home in 45 years, indeed.
If the tour does provide story pointers towards anything, though, it is the promising future England can look forward to, rather than the immediate one for the Lions.
Some said Eddie Jones had accepted a hospital pass when he took over Stuart Lancaster’s broken side, after a desperate home World Cup.
He is far too savvy for that. England could not get any lower when he arrived as coach, so there was little to lose. And he was about to profit from the spoils of a prolific age-group system than had seen England serial winners of the Under-20 World Cup.
Jones has yet to taste defeat since taking charge. Forget about the Lions. The 2019 World Cup cannot come soon enough.
pradley@thenational.ae
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
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- 600-seat auditorium
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A foster couple or family must:
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- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
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4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
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Available: Now
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Rating: 4.5/5
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RESULT
Esperance de Tunis 1 Guadalajara 1
(Esperance won 6-5 on penalties)
Esperance: Belaili 38’
Guadalajara: Sandoval 5’
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