Ireland’s Garry Ringrose pulled himself out of tomorrow’s (SAT) second Lions Test against the Wallabies in a dramatic selection twist down under. The centre had been told he was starting at the MCG only to suffer concussion-related symptoms again and told boss Andy Farrell he was not fit.
Ringrose had a delayed reaction to a head knock after the win over the Brumbies in Sydney two weeks ago that ruled him out of last Saturday’s first Test in Brisbane. He played 80 minutes against the First Nations & Pasifika XV in Melbourne on Tuesday but after being given the nod by Farrell, pulled out after the final big training session of the week with Scotland’s Huw Jones retaining his spot at 13.
Farrell said: “It’s head-related again. It was literally as I was walking off the field, he came to me, and once it’s mentioned, that’s that.
“It’s very easy to keep it to yourself and lie and not be honest and open. It was very big of him and the right thing to do, 10 per cent. For the team, not just for Garry. With these type of things, players are getting very good at telling the truth of how they feel.”
Skipper Maro Itoje added: “I’m gutted for him that he’s in this position. But it shows the measure of the man to be so selfless. All we ask of all of us is to be selfless and put the team first. When push comes to shove, you see who really does it. Garry is a man who really did it.”
