Owen Farrell misses out as Maro Itoje named British and Irish Lions captain

England's Maro Itoje said he was "deeply honoured and humbled" after being appointed captain of the British and Irish Lions for the tour of Australia.

The 30-year-old Saracens lock becomes the 47th Lions captain since 1888, the first Black player to captain the side and only the third Englishman in the last 89 years to be appointed tour leader.

Other features of the 38-man squad are the inclusion of 20-year-old England flanker Henry Pollock, who has only had 32 minutes of international rugby, and the selection of Marcus Smith, Fin Smith and Finn Russell as the first five-eighths with no place for head coach Andy Farrell's son Owen Farrell or Ireland's Sam Prendergast.

New Zealanders chosen are Bundee Aki, Jamison Gibson-Park and James Lowe, with the latter two Lions debutants.

"I will do my best to do the role justice. I am very much looking forward to the challenge ahead, it's going to be a great tour," Itoje said.

"I know the appetite amongst the players is extremely high, everyone is hungry to be a Lion and I can't wait to play my role."

One of the few sure test starters, Itoje will be embarking on his third Lions tour after being selected as the youngest player in New Zealand in 2017 and playing a standout role in South Africa in 2021.

Appointed England captain in place of Jamie George in January, Itoje led his country to second place in this year's Six Nations Championship with four wins in a row.

The first Englishman to lead the Lions since Martin Johnson 24 years ago, also in Australia, and only the second in the professional era, the London-born son of Nigerian parents was the obvious choice after Ireland captain Caelan Doris suffered a shoulder injury.

Doris was not named in the squad and is expected to require surgery.

Itoje said he received an unidentified call on his mobile from an Irish number after club training on Tuesday, a bit of a giveaway since Lions head coach Andy Farrell is also the coach of Ireland.

Even though the line was crackling, and he did not have Farrell's number saved, he recognised the coach's Wigan accent. Then the line went dead.

"I put the phone down, and then it's gone isn't it? He knows something's brewing," laughed Farrell. "So I rang him back and I went 'Oh, by the way, would you like to be British and Irish Lions captain?'.

Itoje had a dinner in London on Wednesday with some of the past captains and he said their passion and appreciation shone through.

"It was amazing. It's a brotherhood, it's a unique club and to spend time with them, for them to show the love and care and appreciation that they still have for the Lions. It was absolutely amazing to be a part of that.

"It's our responsibility now to take it forward and to make sure the Lions continues to be in an elevated position."

Itoje showed he was captain material from an early age, leading the England Under-20s to Junior World Cup triumph in 2014, even though he became Saracens captain only this season and former coach Eddie Jones had declared him too "inward looking".

Itoje disagreed with that assessment and has gone on to prove it wrong, while Jones was shown the exit in 2022.

Henry Pollock is standout selection

Henry Pollock's class and energy were more important than his callow age, Farrell said.

Pollock, with only 32 minutes of international rugby under his belt and who was playing for England Under-20s earlier this year, has made an irresistible case since, capping it off with a superb display for Northampton against Leinster in the Champions Cup last weekend.

"I've watched him a couple of times live and I like what I see," Farrell said after announcing his squad in front of 2000 fans in London's O2 Arena.

"He's trying to make a difference, there's an energy and a bounce about him and that's what I like seeing in his game. If you are good enough, you are old enough."

Owen Farrell misses out

Owen Farrell, who has played for the Lions on three tours, had hopes of representing them again after returning to fitness with French club Racing 92.

But his father and his fellow selectors opted agains the 33-year-old, with Scotland's Finn Russell, and England's Fin Smith and Marcus Smith to contest the No 10 position in the tests, after Ireland's first choice player in that position, Sam Prendergast, also missed out.

The squad comprised 15 Irishmen, including 12 from Leinster, 13 English, eight Scots and only two Welsh, a reflection of their dire run of 17 successive defeats.

The Lions have a game against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. They will have five tour games before the first test in Brisbane on July 19. The second and third tests are on July 26 and August 2.

British & Irish Lions squad:

Forwards: Tadhg Beirne, Ollie Chessum, Jack Conan, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Scott Cummings, Tom Curry, Ben Earl, Zander Fagerson, Tadhg Furlong, Ellis Genge, Maro Itoje (captain), Ronan Kelleher, Joe McCarthy, Jac Morgan, Henry Pollock, Andrew Porter, James Ryan, Pierre Schoeman, Dan Sheehan, Will Stuart, Josh van der Flier.

Backs: Bundee Aki, Elliot Daly, Tommy Freeman, Jamison Gibson-Park, Mack Hansen, Huw Jones, Hugo Keenan, Blair Kinghorn, James Lowe, Alex Mitchell, Garry Ringrose, Finn Russell, Fin Smith, Marcus Smith, Sione Tuipulotu, Duhan van der Merwe, Tomos Williams.

- Reuters