Western Force v B&I Lions | Key Head to Heads

Andy Farrell has named his first B&I Lions squad on foreign soil as he and his side prepare to face the Western Force. Kurtley Beale has been ruled out of the game but is likely to feature in the First Nations and Pasika team game and his battle with Elliot Daly would have been first on the list but we have picked two other key area's to keep an eye on.

Front Row:

Robertson, Paenga-Amosa and Hoskins will do battle against Schoeman, Sheehan and Furlong. This is a blockbuster front row for the visitors as Dan Sheehan captains the side on his first ever game, the props are both exceptionally strong at set piece and valuable in open play. Tadhg Furlong has struggled with injury this season and is getting back to 100%. The Western Force have a decent scrumming front row and a dynamic open field runner in Brandon Paenga-Amosa. It is a fully capped Wallaby front row.

Back Three:

Pietsch, Grealy and Donaldson will have their work cut out against Lowe, Hansen and Daly. While Elliot Daly seems to still get criticism for his selection he is a valuable player in the side and covers 13, 15 and wing with ease. He is deadly on the counter attack and defends well. Having the ability to link up with the Irish wingers outside him will pose another huge threat for the Force. James Lowe has a canon boot for good exits and is  a hard carryer while Mack Hansen always seems to shake the first defender. 

Many expected Ben Donaldson to slip in at 10 but he is not a first timer at 15. Dylan Pietsch is a hard runner and is not affraid to take contact if needed. Mac Grealy has had a decent strike rate since joining the Force from the Reds. He and Matt Proctor are their out and out finishers.