Andy Farrell – The born leader tasked with putting the Lions back on top

By Edward Elliot, PA

Andy Farrell’s passion for the British and Irish Lions is perhaps best encapsulated by his stirring speech ahead of the series decider against Australia in 2013.

“We are taking them boys to the hurt arena this weekend,” he told players in his role as an assistant to Warren Gatland.

“Our mentality is going to be a different mentality than what the British Lions teams have had over the last 16 years.”

The Lions subsequently romped to a 41-16 victory in Sydney and a first tour triumph since 1997.

Ahead of a reunion with the Wallabies, Farrell, who concedes his modern-day team talks are “probably not as dramatic”, is tasked with returning the team to winning ways.

A 1-1 series draw in New Zealand in 2017, for which he again joined Gatland’s backroom staff, was followed by the Lions’ 2-1 loss to South Africa amid Covid-19 restrictions in 2021.

Farrell’s elevation to head coach – only the second Englishman to hold the role in the last 75 years, after Sir Clive Woodward in 2005 – was anything but a surprise.

The 2023 World Rugby coach of the year was odds-on favourite to land one of the sport’s most prestigious posts after establishing Ireland as global heavyweights.

His true emergence as the outstanding candidate to succeed Gatland came in 2022 when he masterminded a stunning series success in New Zealand.

The historic achievement launched a 17-match winning streak which brought Six Nations Grand Slam glory, victory over each of rugby’s leading Test sides and time at the top of the world rankings.

Defeat to the All Blacks in the World Cup quarter-finals in October 2023 finally halted the record-breaking run of victories.

Yet that disappointment did little to damage the rising stock of a born leader renowned for emotional intelligence, superb man-management skills, a shrewd rugby brain and an unflappable mentality.

Farrell bounced back to lead Ireland to a second successive Six Nations title in 2024 and a drawn summer series against world champions South Africa before embarking on his Lions sabbatical – a term he is not a fan of – after ending the autumn with victory over Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies.

 

“It sounds like I’m going on holiday – and that’s not the case, I can guarantee you that,” he said in November.

Born in Wigan in May 1975, dual code international Farrell represented his hometown club in rugby league with distinction.

A goal-kicking loose forward, he made his first-team debut in November 1991 at the age of 16 – two months after the birth of son Owen, the former England captain – and regularly lifted silverware, in addition to twice being named Man of Steel.

Farrell switched codes to play for Saracens in 2005 but the transition was severely hampered by foot surgery and back problems, including a prolapsed disc after a car crash.

Injuries limited him to just eight Test caps in rugby union and kept him sidelined for the latter stages of England’s run to the 2007 World Cup final, where they finished runners-up to South Africa.

Farrell was later joined at Saracens by a teenage Owen and then remained with the Premiership club following retirement in 2009 to begin his coaching career before joining the England setup under Stuart Lancaster ahead of the 2012 Six Nations.

Four years later, the 50-year-old headed across the Irish Sea seeking to rebuild his reputation after being dismissed by newly-appointed England coach Eddie Jones in the aftermath of a dismal home World Cup.

Farrell, who initially served as Ireland’s defence coach under Schmidt before stepping into the top job following the 2019 World Cup, has since given the RFU cause for regret.

Following a rocky transitional period amid the coronavirus pandemic, his vision of a slick system of short, swift interplay featuring multiple dummy runners and ‘messy wingers’ free to roam from the flanks clicked into gear in devastating fashion and to widespread acclaim.

His well-earned reward has been two contract extensions from the IRFU – initially until 2025 and then 2027 – and now an opportunity to lead the Lions.

“This means the world to me,” said Farrell when his appointment was announced in January last year.

“To be thought of as a candidate for the head coach’s role is pretty special, but to be chosen is pretty magical.”