Ireland boss Andy Farrell stated being named the coach of the British and Irish Lions for the 2025 tour of Australia “means the world”.
Farrell will work solely with the mixed facet from December this yr till the conclusion of the tour, that means he would miss Ireland’s Six Nations marketing campaign in 2025.
Stream Over 50 Sports Live & On-Demand with Kayo. New to Kayo? Start Your Free Trial Today >
The 48-year-old former England dual-code worldwide just lately signed an extension to his contract as Ireland coach until the conclusion of the subsequent World Cup in 2027.
Under Farrell’s stewardship, Ireland gained a Six Nations Grand Slam final yr, the Triple Crown in 2022 and secured a primary ever sequence win in New Zealand.
Ireland additionally rose to primary on this planet rankings earlier than final yr’s World Cup.
However, they once more did not make it past the quarter-finals of the showpiece occasion following an agonising loss to the All Blacks.
Farrell succeeds Warren Gatland, who has led the Lions on their final three excursions to the southern hemisphere courting again to 2013.
Farrell was a member of Gatland’s teaching workforce for the 2013 2-1 sequence win over Australia and tied sequence with New Zealand in 2017.
“This means the world to me,” Farrell advised a London news convention on Thursday to announce his appointment.
He added: “I was always a fan of the Lions but 2013 lit something inside me that made me think ‘I need to get back involved with this’ so to be chosen as head coach is magical.
“I’ve got massive shoes to fill in terms of the people who’ve been before me and Gats (Gatland) has already been in touch.”
The Lions are comprised of main gamers from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.
They historically tour one in all Australia, New Zealand and South Africa each 4 years. But they had been with out their conventional raucous help throughout their final tour, a 2021 Covid-affected sequence loss in South Africa.
Lions chairman Ieuan Evans, whose three excursions as a participant included the victorious 1989 sequence in Australia, welcomed Farrell’s appointment.
“We know the challenge we face in Australia won’t be easy and to have someone of his stature with the Lions puts us in a great position to replicate the success we enjoyed in 2013,” stated the previous Wales wing.
Lions chief govt Ben Calveley, lauding Farrell as “one of the best coaches in the world”, added: “His achievements with Ireland in recent years have been exceptional and his coaching experience at Test-match level with Ireland, England and the Lions make him an outstanding candidate for this role.”
Expectations will probably be excessive on Farrell to ship a sequence win down beneath with Australian rugby in disaster.
Eddie Jones give up because the Wallabies’ coach after simply two wins from 9 Tests final yr which included a group-stage exit from the World Cup after defeats by Wales and Fiji.
But Farrell stated: “Knowing the Australian, psyche, personnel and what it’s like to tour there, I know what this will mean to them. It only comes round once (for an Australia player) every 12 years.
“I know the journey in Australian rugby needs a little bit of repair but we know they want to get it right because it means so much and 2025 is going to be massive.”
Farrell, the daddy of England’s Owen Farrell, may come up towards his former Ireland boss Joe Schmidt with the Kiwi linked to the vacant Australia coach function.
Farrell served as Schmidt’s defence coach with Ireland earlier than succeeding him in 2019.
The Lions start the 2025 marketing campaign with a sport towards Argentina in Dublin on June 20.
They face Australia in three Tests in Brisbane on July 19, Melbourne on July 26 and Sydney on Aug 2.
Source web site: www.foxsports.com.au
