No let up as Lions put out strongest side for final Australia test
SYDNEY :British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell has made only two changes to his starting team for final test against Australia on Saturday with his sights firmly focused on sealing a 3-0 series sweep.
With the series already won after last week's victory in Melbourne, Farrell resisted the temptation to give squad players a run and said he had selected a team he thought was best able to finish the tour with a third test win.
"It would mean the world to us, it's something that we promised ourselves that we were going to chase after," he told a news conference on Thursday.
"It's a big ask, but it's something that we're determined to do. This is the best 23 to take the group forward."
Farrell said one of the most pleasing elements of the tour had been the way all the players had bought into the concept of squad unity, regardless of whether they were selected for the tests or not.
"It touches you, it really does," he said. "It touches you in the sense of how much it means to them. For example, you come in after such a big victory on Saturday night (and) the people that were celebrating the most were the guys that hadn't put the shirt on."
Blair Kinghorn, who missed the first test because of a knee injury, replaces James Lowe on the left wing as he did during last week's win in Melbourne, while James Ryan starts in the second row in place of Ollie Chessum.
Chessum drops to the bench, where Ben Earl comes in as back row cover alongside Jac Morgan with Farrell opting for a 6-2 split in favour of the forwards for what is forecast to be a wet weather test at Stadium Australia.
The starting back row and halfback pairing remain the same for the third consecutive match, while Tadhg Furlong will start his ninth straight Lions test in the