George North drawing on Wales experiences of touring New Zealand ahead of gruelling Lions tour

Exclusive: The 25-year-old spoke to The Independent about the lessons he learned from the 2016 series against the All Blacks

North limped off during the first Test against New Zealand last summer (Getty)

Flick back through the calendar 12 months and you’ll find another Warren Gatland side preparing for a tour against the best team in the world in their own back yard.

Wales are the last side to tour New Zealand of all the home nations and George North, present on that gruelling tour, knows fully well what he and his new British and Irish Lions teammates are in for.

“Like Wales, it’s their main sport, everyone is super passionate, everyone loves rugby,” North told The Independent. “The fans there are amazing fans and will support them to the end and they know what kind of quality team they’ve got and they’ll let you know about it as well.

“Whenever I’ve toured there, last summer with Wales and World Cup 2011, is that the people are so welcoming, they couldn’t do enough for you, everyone is your brother.”

Wales were whitewashed on that tour in 2016, with North tearing his hamstring in the opening Test, but closely matched with the All Blacks – even taking the lead at points – until the last 10 minutes of the game.

And while Gatland may have learned something from that aspect of the tour to take ahead this summer, North is still unsure as to how to combat New Zealand’s ability to move into an extra gear so late on in a game.

“If you know then let me know and I’ll pass it on,” joked North, who was speaking as an ambassador for mattress brand Leesa. “I think if you look at it and start off that with that point in the season we’d gone a full season and obviously they had just started so obviously you can factor in the fatigue factor and everything like that but the main thing is the inner belief and confidence they have.

“They know they will go toe-to-toe for 60 minutes or even 70 minutes but that last 10-20 minutes, they will back their skillset, back the squad and back the players.

“Nine times out of 10 – 10 times out of 10 arguably – they get a result and it’s good to watch but not when it’s against you!”

Shane Williams recently told The Independent of how Sam Warburton can expect a hostile reception everywhere from the airport officials at immigration to the concierge at the hotel.

And while North is expecting to be the focus of off-the-field Kiwi jibes, he was glowing about playing in such an atmosphere that is orchestrated by the New Zealand public.

North admitted he had to block out criticism at the start of the season (Getty)

Asked if he is expecting a bit of stick, the 25-year-old said: “Yeah but that’s just rugby though isn’t it?

“They’re very welcoming and the first test, before I got injured, was a great Test. The fans on both sides were typical rugby fans, there was such a great atmosphere. It’s a great country to tour, everyone is very welcoming, very open and it’s a good atmosphere.”

The impact from that tour set the tone for the start of North’s season, where a lack of a preseason led to question marks about his Wales position – which could have heavily impacted his chances of making the 41-man Lions squad announced last month.

North is expected to start the Tests against New Zealand - his second Lions tour

While accepting that his place was under threat, he insisted that he had to block out the debate sparked in Wales in November and “focus on what got me here”.

“You won’t go through a day when people don’t doubt you or someone who won’t agree with it,” he added. “At the start of the season, I didn’t start as well as I was hoping, I was coming off the back of a torn hamstring from the summer tour of New Zealand so I didn’t really hit my straps early and that’s when people start questioning you.

“A lot of the time you just need to block it out. I don’t really read a lot of the press because… I won’t say anything else there! But my mother does and she tells me which is the worst bit.

“I know the type of player that I am and I know once I find a bit of for what I can do, so it’s just finding that and blocking everything else out. I just focus on what got me here.”

Leesa specialise in mattresses made to help you sleep better. In addition to providing thousands with a great night’s sleep, Leesa is committed to supporting the homeless by donating mattresses to shelters across the country. For more information, visit www.leesa.co.uk