Lions back three places not decided - Gatland
British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland has suggested Jack Nowell, Elliot Daly and Liam Williams all remain in the frame to start the first Test against New Zealand despite featuring in Tuesday's tour game against the Chiefs.
Nowell, Daly and Williams impressed in the back three as the Lions beat the Chiefs 34-6 in Waikato, four days before they take on the All Blacks at Eden Park.
Those who feature in midweek games ahead of Tests are generally considered to be out of the running for weekend action, at least from the start.
Anthony Watson, George North and Leigh Halfpenny are thought to be in line to start for the Lions on Saturday, but Gatland said selection had not yet been resolved.
"No, not at all," he told Sky Sports. "I thought the back three [against the Chiefs] were good. I spoke to both wingers and said there is an opportunity for them, and a few other positions as well. It hasn't been shut out.
"We're going to meet as coaches later on. We'll sit down in the morning and have a look at the tape, and I've said to the players we'll probably announce the team to them tomorrow [Wednesday] night before it's announced on Thursday."
Asked if the Lions were peaking at the right time, Gatland told Sky Sports: "I hope so. We always said we felt we would get better the longer the tour went on and the more time that the players spent together and [worked on] the combinations.
"There are still things to work on but it was a really important result for those players that had been in front in the first two midweek games and unfortunately let those leads slip. Today we were much more clinical.
"I think we're in pretty good shape. We feel as a group we're getting better from week to week, and the quality of opposition we've had has definitely improved us as a group.
"We've had to dig deep on occasions and play against real quality sides and that's been a huge benefit for us."
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The prem games this season have mainly been great to watch , with the exception of Sale. So boring and predictable.
Let's have more of Bristol, Bath , Quins etc style of play.
Rugby needs expansive play to put more bums on seats . Not the dirge of rolling forward mauls constantly trying to bully their way over the line.
It has its place yes to draw the defence but the fans want to see more running rugby . Not win at any cost and sod the entertainment .
So Borthwick should drop Marcus Smith? He's the odd one out, forcing the rest of the English backline into a gameplay they don't know. Replacing him with Fin or Ford makes everyone more likely to succeed.
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