Gatland gives the likes of Haskell Lions hope

Warren Gatland said the likes of James Haskell must be ready for a British and Irish Lions call-up despite being snubbed for the tour of New Zealand.
Haskell admitted he had come to the conclusion that he "wasn't meant to be a Lion" after the England flanker was omitted from a 41-man squad named last month.
Yet with the domestic season still in progress and such a demanding tour schedule to contend with, there is a strong chance Gatland will need to call for reinforcements.
And the Lions coach said those who get the nod must be prepared if and when they are needed.
"I think everyone, you keep your fingers crossed, if you're a player that's missed out and you know you're pretty close, your chance of getting in is if someone picks up an injury over the next month or early on in the tour," Gatland told Sky Sports.
"You might be disappointed now, but something can happen and change over the next two-three, six to eight weeks. You've got to be ready for a potential call-up if called upon."
That could provide some encouragement for Wasps forward Haskell, who conceded defeat in his bid to become a Lion.
"The Lions is the pinnacle of every rugby player's career. It's the difference between being a good player and a great player and I obviously wasn't good enough to do it. That's the fact," Haskell was quoted as saying by The Guardian.
"It was not to be really and there's nothing I can do about it. I've tried my best, but I wasn't meant to be a Lion.
"I thought I played well in the Six Nations and put myself out there. Could I have done any more? Not really. I just wasn't good enough in [the coaches'] eyes.
"There are obviously personal preferences and I wasn't the man to take it on. Excuses might give you comfort at night, but it's down to facts. I was disappointed, went home, spoke to my missus, it was like 'oh, that's s***', and then I went away and thought about it, but I'm done with it now.
"Ireland v England had a massive role to play in it; Peter O'Mahony played his way in. Ross Moriarty played his way in during Wales v England. It's about peaking at the right time and seizing your opportunity. I obviously failed to do that."
Watch every game of the Lions Tour of NZ streaming live on rugbypass.com, home of the best online rugby coverage including news, highlights, previews & reviews, live scores, and more!
Latest Comments
Yeah, I don’t really get it either.
The teams will need to be more competitive at some stage as I’m sure it won’t be cost effective before long. It’s a lot of money and resources they have to pump into it just to field teams, let alone compete.
Even with the Boks only focus being on RWC’s, the euro comps would be a great way to develop test players in the first 1-3 years of a RWC cycle.
Go to commentsIt's a fact: Reddit has always been, is, and will be my source for crypto discussions, security tips, and market trends. Little did I know it would be the same site that helped save me from financial ruin. Some months ago, an AMA thread about Trust Geeks Hack Expert showed up. People asked them anything: from lost wallet recoveries to phishing scams; their answers sounded really detailed, transparent, and full of insight. At the time, I didn't know that their help was near. It all started with what I thought was a routine software update. I had received an e-mail from what looked like a trusted exchange, telling me to install an important patch. The email looked *legit—*matching the branding, formatting, and even the usual tone of messages I had received before. Without a second thought, I downloaded the update and installed it. Biggest mistake of my life. It froze within minutes, and then it automatically restarted. My crypto wallet was empty when I regained access. $200,000-gone. At first, I thought it was some kind of glitch, but as I dug deeper, the cold reality hit me hard: I had been hacked. The "update" was a form of malware designed to drain wallets by injecting malicious code. Panic set in, but rather than spiral, I remembered the Trust Geeks Hack Expert AMA. Their confidence in handling cases like mine had stood out to me. I rushed back to the thread, found their contact details Website https://trustgeekshackexpert.com/-- Email: trustgeekshackexpert{@}fastservice{.}com, and reached out immediately. Their response was prompt and very reassuring. They asked for every little detail I could remember-from the time of the installation of the fake update to the exact nature of the transactions I had done prior to this. They got to work, tracing the movement of my stolen funds using some advanced blockchain forensics.
Days went by, and I had my doubts, but they kept me updated. Then came a message that I was praying for; they had recovered my $200,000. It sounded like a dream come true. All stress, regret, and anger vanished at that moment. Trust Geeks Hack Expert saved not only my funds but also taught me a lesson which will never be forgotten: never trust email links. Now, I double-check every update; use cold storage for large amounts; don't click on anything that's remotely suspicious. If not for that Reddit AMA, I would have never found the only team skilled enough to turn my disaster into a comeback story.
Go to comments