The Leinster and Ireland captain was nailed on for selection but misses out on the Lions due to injury
Leinster and Ireland captain Caelan Doris has missed out on selection for the British & Irish Lions tour to Australia.
Andy Farrell named his squad on 8 May in front of a live audience at the O2 Arena without Doris who will miss the tour due to a shoulder injury.
The number 8 suffered the injury in Leinster’s European Champions Cup semi-final loss to Northampton Saints.
It is rumoured that Doris could be absent for four to six months, therefore missing the whole tour.
Doris was also among the favourites to be named captain of the Lions, especially with his connection to Farrell through the national setup. In his absence, England captain Maro Itoje has been given the role becoming the first Englishman to get the gig in 24 years.
In lieu of Doris, Farrell confirmed Jack Conan, also of Leinster and Ireland, as the squad’s only out-and-out number 8. In the squad is also Ben Earl and Tom Curry who have both played at the back of the scrum at test level.
Read more: The full list of British & Irish Lions fixtures this summer
Elsewhere, other notable absentees included Toulouse’s Jack Willis, Leinster fly-half Sam Prendergast and Andy’s son, Owen Farrell.
The first time the Lions will take the field will be against Argentina on Friday 20 June at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. The first test against Australia will then be on Saturday 19 July in Brisbane.
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