Warrior Itoje Joins Pantheon Of Lions Captains As Mcbride Pays Tribute

They were speaking hours isolated and from different ends of nan world but a fewer things agreed Maro Itoje successful Sydney, New South Wales and Willie John McBride successful Ballyclare, Antrim - some were/are locks and, arsenic of past Saturday, some cognize really it feels to skipper nan Lions to a bid win.

McBride, 85 years young and leader of nan immortals of 1974 successful South Africa, is nan oldest surviving victorious Lions captain.

That merry set numbered conscionable 4 earlier nan play - Finlay Calder (1989 successful Australia), Martin Johnson (1997 successful South Africa) and Sam Warburton (2013 successful Australia) being nan others. Now location are five.

"What connection would I nonstop to Maro?" says McBride. "I'd opportunity good done, son. Well done. It's ne'er easy to triumph a bid successful nan confederate hemisphere and they've achieved it.

"I watched it astatine location connected Saturday morning. I couldn't beryllium doing pinch listening to each nan rubbish down nan club, each nan experts giving their opinions.

"The crippled was tremendous. The champion I've seen successful a very agelong time. There's tons astir modern rugby that I don't understand. I don't understand line-outs immoderate more. I haven't a hint why they fuss having scrums because cipher knows what's going on.

"We had 32 players, a coach and a head erstwhile I was captain. They person much than 32 group successful nan backroom unit now. We had 22 matches. Everything is different, but I'd ideate thing that hasn't changed overmuch is nan emotion of having won.

"It's nan biggest honour you tin person successful rugby - winning a bid pinch nan Lions."

Generations disagreement them but successful their ain measurement they are profoundly fascinating men pinch stories that transcend rugby. McBride played done The Troubles, an Ulster protestant and an Irish skipper who utilized rugby to effort to build bridges betwixt 2 warring communities while others were trying to rustle them up.

The admiration for Itoje comes successful a different shape - successful his activity successful giving severely disadvantaged kids from Nigeria, nan onshore of his parents' birth, a due education. Through his Pearl Fund, he is making a quality successful nan lives of orphaned, fatherless and poverty-stricken young people.

McBride doesn't understand nan crippled Itoje plays, but he knew really he would person felt connected Saturday night. "I'm very grateful and it's evidently a tremendous honour to beryllium successful specified esteemed company," says Itoje erstwhile asked astir nan prime set of captains he's now joined.

"When I'm aged and grey these occasions and these tours are going to beryllium nan experiences I look backmost connected pinch utmost fondness.

"I would beryllium amazed if you tin find a British and Irish rugby subordinate who says they don't want to beryllium a Lion. It's thing that each subordinate holds beloved to their heart. This is thing nan players want and nan players will proceed to want for decades and for arsenic agelong arsenic rugby is being played.

"You don't person galore shots astatine it. The adjacent circuit is ne'er guaranteed. There's a rarity to it. If you miss one, you whitethorn ne'er person different opportunity.

"It's been said earlier but successful galore ways, it shouldn't really work. You person 4 different nations, 4 different ideologies, respective different ways of really to play nan crippled and really to think.

"It is not a homogenous group astatine all, but group bargain successful and you forge awesome relationships and you build bonds. That's what makes it special."

Itoje is 1 of nan greats now. He has played successful 8 consecutive Lions Tests (seven arsenic a starter) and that will go 9 connected Saturday erstwhile nan Lions look nan Wallabies successful nan past creation successful Sydney.

His captaincy is low-key, almost gentle. When he wants immoderate occurrence and brimstone successful nan dressing room he tends to telephone connected others to present it. He erstwhile described himself arsenic "deeply thoughtful, prone to overthinking, actually" - but that's portion of what makes him interesting.

He's a rugby subordinate but besides a Christian, a collector of African creation - "it speaks to my soul" - a philanthropist, a beardown sound connected anti-racism - "it has happened truthful often successful my life" - and a person of politics. When asked what was nan coolest connection he's received since wrapping up nan bid past weekend, he says it was from overseas caput David Lammy.

Itoje is besides successful nan pantheon - a fastener who wreaks havoc pinch his power, his nous and his strategical brilliance. His durability is astounding. He's played each infinitesimal of each Six Nations crippled going backmost six years.

In 37 of his past 38 games for England and nan Lions he's gone nan distance. Softly spoken, he's arsenic difficult arsenic they come. A subordinate who came to rugby precocious and to captaincy later still, but who's near his people connected nan crippled and pinch years connected his broadside - he's only 30 - to make that people moreover bigger.

What will he retrieve of this travel - nan rugby aliases nan people? "It's difficult to differentiate it. Ultimately, it's going to beryllium nan group but nan rugby makes it sweeter," says Itoje.

"There is simply a verse that I can't rather retrieve what book it is from successful nan Bible [Mark 8:36], but it says 'What does it profit a man to summation nan full world but suffer his soul?' If we won each crippled and we perfectly hated 1 different - I deliberation life is much than that."

There is 1 much measurement to return and that's turning 2-0 into 3-0, which would beryllium nan first clip nan Lions won 3 Tests successful a statement connected circuit since McBride's Lions of 1974.

"We want to beryllium portion of thing very special," said Itoje. "Winning a Lions Test bid is evidently highly special, but what would beryllium an absolute dream would beryllium to spell retired location and execute to nan level that we deliberation we tin execute and triumph nan 3rd game.

"While nan first 2 games person been awesome because we sewage 2 wins, there's still a emotion that we haven't put it together successful a measurement we cognize that we can. That's nan breathtaking point for america - we want to pursuit down nan capacity we've been searching for."

That would make it an unbeaten circuit successful Australia, again a first since 1974. You put this imaginable portion of history to McBride and he can't thief but propulsion you up. "Unbeaten? They were beaten successful Dublin [against nan Pumas], weren't they? That was portion of nan tour, wasn't it?"

More than half a period connected and nan awesome man is still protective of his boys and their spot successful Lions history. Once a warrior, ever a warrior. Itoje has now joined that class.

"I deliberation we beryllium it to ourselves," Itoje said astir nan request nan decorativeness nan bid 3-0.

"The squad has worked incredibly difficult for coming up to nan past 2 months. We beryllium it to ourselves to springiness nan champion relationship of ourselves. We beryllium it to each different to springiness nan champion relationship of ourselves. Part of that is going for nan win. This will already beryllium a memorable tour, but we want it to unrecorded really agelong successful nan memory."