Henry's calm before a storm

Graham Henry

For about an hour yesterday, All Black coach Graham Henry sat patiently on a chair in the ticket office of the Auckland Rugby Union, answering similar questions about the Lions tour.

It was not an auspicious setting, but it offered a useful media workout for Henry before the Fourth Estate deluge which will hit New Zealand alongside the bloated Lions entourage.

Everyone wanted their own time with Henry and it had to be hoped that the opening interview - a live cross to BSkyB television in London - did not set the order for the tour.

The onlookers from New Zealand television, radio and the press had to wait for a couple of opening inquiries before Henry was asked to tackle the Jonny question.

Wilkinson still had a lifeline, Henry said, and he was certain the World Cup star would be cleared to tour if he survived a few club games.

But right now Welshman Stephen Jones had to be the top-rated alternative.

The strong core of experienced English players had been expected by the All Black panel, while captain Brian O'Driscoll was a superb centre who was respected by all the players.

Bringing seasoned men such as Lawrence Dallaglio, Neil Back and Will Greenwood would boost the side's experience and raise the levels of their think-tank.

Asked whether the selection was a reflection of Sir Clive Woodward's authority, Henry was diplomatic.

"He does not write his own rules but he gets his own way," Henry suggested.

There were a few surprises, such as Ollie Smith, Andrew Sheridan, Andy Titterrel and Matt Stevens - and the fact that they were all English might provoke a few rumblings in the valleys of Six Nations champions Wales.

The Lions' challenge, as always, would be to blend the players from four nations, something Henry admitted he was unable to master when he coached the Lions on their tour of Australia four years ago.

Part of his difficulty was that he was also trying to coach Wales. Woodward had been able to concentrate purely on the Lions since he quit the England job.

So was it easier to coach the composite four-nations Lions side or the All Blacks Henry had lining up against them?

It was a difficult question. Guys who had grown up with the Lions knew about all the problems.

"I was told all about that, but probably didn't know all about that really. Like you think you do, but you don't."

Henry was the only foreigner in the Lions management in 2001, and the group did not get the team harmony and dynamics right.

"And being the coach you feel the greatest responsibility, so I found it difficult in the end because I was applying things from my New Zealand background to a Lions situation that didn't gel.

"The things that New Zealand rugby players would accept, Lions rugby players didn't, and I am not criticising them for that. They just come from a different way of viewing those things because of their upbringings and experience over the years."

The All Black panel were encouraged by what they had seen in the Super 12. Their ideas and planning was much more advanced than at the same time last season.

Four New Zealand sides were in the top six in the series and a number of players - no names supplied - had impressed.

Lock Keith Robinson, however, was an unlikely contender for the Lions series after his latest back problems, but the news Henry had from South Africa about Richie McCaw was heartening.

The openside flanker had recovered after being knocked out last weekend against the Bulls and the latest medical bulletin suggested he would be fine to resume rugby in a few weeks.

The Inside Word

"I'd say in a couple of the early games Woodward will be looking at [playing] guys like Dallaglio and Back, who are a bit undermatched ... We have to see ourselves as the welcome-back party for those guys, the advance guard to soften the Lions up.

"Woodward knows Dallaglio, Back and Hill don't take a backward step. I think they're a bit past it, but I'd hate to be proven wrong."
- Bay of Plenty assistant coach Kevin Schuler, looking forward to the Lions' first tour game on June 4

"It had a huge impact upon me as a player when I went there the first time and then back as a coach ... You actually understand the thinking of what makes an All Black, the way players come through, the way families are all part of it.

"That's the challenge. You are taking on the country, not just the All Blacks."
- Lions assistant coach Ian McGeechan

"Remember what they said about the English team before the last World Cup, Dad's Army won the cup, didn't they?"
- Former All Black Grant Fox

"I think he [Woodward] is real clever, he's covered all bases. Then you look at the options New Zealand have available at the moment. If a few key players are injured and out of the 22 or starting XV, we'd have a few worries."
- Former All Black captain Sean Fitzpatrick