British Lions face up to a torrid tour of South Africa

The first Lions Test doesn't kick off in Durban until June 20, but already the omens are not looking good for a repeat of the success that the British and Irish rugby side enjoyed on their last visit to South Africa in 1997.

Firstly, Irishman Tomas O'Leary has broken his ankle, and Tom Shanklin, the experienced Wales centre, has dislocated his shoulder, meaning that both these players have had to pull out.

And today, Alan Quinlan, another Irish player, will find out whether or not he will be expelled from the tour. Quinlan, a flanker with the Munster side, faces a disciplinary hearing in Dubli where he stands accused of gouging an opponent’s eye during a recent Heineken Cup semi-final.

But as The Observer’s Eddie Butler mooted, Quinlan's potential expulsion from the tour could turn out to be a blessing in disguise, because of the form of the player who would be in line to replace him. "The way Tom Croft played for Leicester in the second Heineken Cup semi, the one played to its shoot-out conclusion last Sunday, served only to place a certain extra pressure on Quinlan," Butler wrote.

"There's no denying that Croft and Quinlan are very different types of player and that [Lions coach] Ian McGeechan obviously fancies the Irishman as a key character in the midweek team, the side that must keep on smiling through the kickings for the good of overall morale.

"But Croft is in brilliant form, fast, elastic and industrious," Butler continued. "He may be too good for the midweek team. If there's not a place for such an athlete on dry grounds then we may as well all pack up and poke a pig in the eye."

Meanwhile, Peter de Villiers, the South African coach, has had a largely trouble-free approach to the coming series. He lists only full-back Conrad Jantjes as a certain absentee for the world champions, and is full of confidence.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
Eddie Butler, the Observer: "There are crumbs of comfort for the Lions as they watch their injury list grow. The Super 14 is taking its toll too on South Africa's top players, with utility back Francois Steyn suffering a knee injury and full-back Conrad Jantjes breaking his leg. They will miss the Test series. They are but crumbs. No sooner had the Lions blasted forth their fanfare and named their squad of 37 than they began to fall over. First it was Tomas O'Leary with a broken ankle, then Tom Shanklin with a dislocated shoulder against Newport Gwent Dragons." ·