The Lions, written off as having the capacity to surprise, have proved everyone wrong as they are believed to be about to call up five players to join the tour.
Coach Warren Gatland already has 40 players in New Zealand - it was 41 until Scotland's Stuart Hogg broke hischeekbone - and yet, according to All Blacks coach Steve Hansen, the Lions want more troops on the ground.
And Gatland wants them because he's going to effectively split his squad into a test unit and a midweek unit. He wants more players so the two teams can train and function separately.
"There is a clear difference between the two teams," said Hansen. "The Wednesday team and the Saturday team. It was a good game of footy on Tuesday night [Lions versus the Highlanders] and both teams participated in that. It could have gone either way so I don't think they have lost too much ground in that department. But there is definitely a difference between the two squads.
"I think he is about to bring a few extra players out to give himself the ability to play two squads. He's at the stage where he wants to do that."
