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British and Irish Lions 2017: Warren Gatland facing up to toughest decision of tour with All Blacks just days away

Gatland believes the first midweek victory of the tour proves there is no split in the squad but would not reveal his thought process behind his Test selection to face the All Blacks

Jack de Menezes

FMG Stadium

Tuesday 20 June 2017 12:23 BST

Warren Gatland would not give any hints away over his Test selection (Getty)

With the All Blacks just around the corner Warren Gatland knows he now faces the biggest decision yet of this British and Irish Lions tour.

Gatland watched his much-changed Lions crush a disappointing Chiefs side 34-6 in Hamilton to record the midweek group’s first win in New Zealand with a number of fringe players putting their hands up for consideration against the three-time world champions in Auckland in just three days’ time.

Jack Nowell bagged a try double with Elliot Daly also impressing to give Gatland significant food for thought with George North’s place on the left wing now perhaps the biggest discussion point in today’s final selection meeting.

British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

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1/15British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Liam Williams – 8 out of 10

Looked to come into the line nearly every time the Lions attacked and his work ethic was first class. Cut a beautiful line to receive the ball off Nowell and surge through the defence, sucking in two players before offloading to Jared Payne to score.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Jack Nowell – 9 out of 10

Made a good break off William’s neat step, and was alert enough in the same move to come in-field and collect the ball from the base to score as he dived over the ruck smartly. On hand to finish a lovely flowing move for his second, though he still had to produce a good finish as he straightened the line and jinked his way past Shaun Stevenson and Chase Tiatia. His best showing by far.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Jared Payne – 8 out of 10

Another who put in his best performance, bagging a try in the process. However, his highlight moment was having the awareness to take Daly’s pass and offload to Robbie Henshaw on the way to Nowell’s second try, and he was not at fault for dropping Tommy Seymour’s dreadful pass after he had closed the space in the full-back.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Robbie Henshaw – 7 out of 10

A bit ragged at the start as he tried to lead the Lions’ rush defence, but he soon settled and set the tone with his tackling. Showed wonderfully fast hands at times, and struck up a good partnership with Payne outside him.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Elliot Daly – 8 out of 10

Brilliant break down the left wing produced Nowell’s second try in what was undoubtedly the best score for the Lions of the tour so far. He showed his impressive footwork early on, and his withdrawal in the 60th minute suggests he’ll play a part on Saturday.

British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Dan Biggar – 8 out of 10

Good start to the game and controlled play well. Strong tackle on opposite man Stephen Donald dislodged the ball and triggered a counter attack. Lucky to not see yellow for a high tackle on Tom Sanders, but a 100 per cent kicking record will please him and he read the game very well when triggering attacks.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Greig Laidlaw – 6 out of 10

His delivery of the ball is slightly slower than both Conor Murray and Rhys Webb and it hurts the Lions back line, but he did have one smart break in the second half as he found a gap on the fringe and nearly outpaced the covering defence.

British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Joe Marler – 6 out of 10

Too eager at the start of the match and it cost him, with his late shoulder charge on Nepo Laulala earning him a yellow card, though he was lucky that the Chiefs failed to score while he was absent. His return remained solid in the scrum upon his arrival, but the yellow spoiled his day.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Rory Best – 6 out of 10

Picked up a knock midway through the first half but soldiered on valiantly. Accurate in the lineout until a crooked throw at the start of the second half saw him wobble on his throw, and penalised for handling the ball on the floor. Captained the side well but his individual performance could have been better.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Dan Cole – 7 out of 10

Looked to try and impose himself in the breakdown, though was just a split-second off the pace early on, yet winning a turnover with the final play of the game was evidence of his battling performance. Very solid in the scrum.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Iain Henderson – 8 out of 10

A third consecutive strong performance has put him right in the mix for a place among the Test replacements. Gave the decisive pass to Nowell for his second try and one exceptional take in the lineout.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Courtney Lawes – 8 out of 10

Brilliant jump to steal the first lineout and proved a thorn in the Chiefs’ side. Strong carrying with a nice offload off the deck to Nowell early on, and also produced a stunning take in the air when Best threw too far on the Chiefs side.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

James Haskell – 7 out of 10

The unlucky one who had to be sacrificed when Marler was sent to the cooler, but he was on the shoulder twice in the first half to collect offloads from Lawes and Nowell that made significant gains. Crucial clearout in the second Nowell try, and a good all-round performance.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

Justin Tipuric – 7 out of 10

Showed incredible upper body strength to hold up Mitch Brown in the opening minutes and win the scrum put-in. Brought a good physical edge to the breakdown, and also took on a great deal of responsibility in the lineout.

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British and Irish Lions player ratings vs Chiefs

CJ Stander – 8 out of 10

Extremely powerful carrying as he started the game with a point to prove to Gatland. May have forced his way into the Test side, although the fact that he played 80 minutes may work against him.

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Daly was removed after 60 minutes in what appeared to be a nod towards the Wasps back playing some kind of role at Eden Park on Saturday, though Gatland would only say that prospect is a possibility despite the England international being the only tactical replacement of the night at the FMG Stadium.

"I think the performances have been good. Not everyone agrees with that opinion, " he said. "We are pretty happy with where we are at the moment. The selection meeting will be tough and that’s the way we want it. Guys put up their hands tonight and there will be some healthy debate.

"The selection meeting will be with all the coaches. The way it always works, I can tell you in the past it's always a consensus of that group. It's never one person's call, it's coaches discussing the options then collectively agreeing on selections. That's exactly what will happen tomorrow.

"We'll have some lively debate, and then we will all agree on it. It will be us all contributing."

Nowell, Daly and Liam Williams gelled to fine effect in the tourists’ first real back-three performance of attacking flair against the Chiefs.

Gatland believes Nowell's upswing in performance echoed that of a number of the men who triumphed on Tuesday evening.

"Someone like Jack Nowell, it just hadn't happened for him in the first couple of games," he added.

"But he is a player who is prolific in terms of getting his hands on the ball, and he showed that when he scored his tries. I was pleased to see him play well and I thought Elliot (Daly) looked sharp and Liam (Williams) too.

"It was a combination that looked pretty dangerous and pretty potent."

Elliot Daly could find himself in the Test squad after coming off early (Getty)

Skipper Sam Warburton’s selection remains a bone of contention with Peter O'Mahony, Sean O'Brien and Taulupe Faletau having forged a formidable and so far first-choice back-row as the Lions' strongest XV have ground both the Crusaders and the Maori All Blacks into submission.

Asked if Warburton's situation underlines a positive of his squad’s strength in depth, Gatland replied: "Absolutely, it's what you want. We spoke about the quality of the squad before we left and some players haven't disappointed us."

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