What does Lydiate have to do to overtake Ferris in people's opinion?
Be a better player AND offer more to the Lions team in Australia.
I'd personally already have him ahead of Ferris as he's a much more consistent player, and is the kind of player that every team needs, especially against the likes of Pocock. I'd have thought picking up player of the 6 nations (rightly so, despite the crazy selection process) may have been enough, but obviously not.
Lydiate brings the best out of Warburton, and if we're gonna compete with one of, if not the best openside in the world in Pocock, we need Warburton at his best, and that requires Lydiate alongside him.
I am struggling to think of bad days for Ferris at this point. He's been consistently good to awesome this season except when his team has disintegrated so much he simply doesn't have a chance. See England, and to an extent whenever Ireland play Wales. Yes, the Welsh back-row have the edge in these games. They should do for a number of reasons. They are a more balanced unit. They play behind a superior scrum - that gives them the front foot, the psychological edge, the fresher front five to assist them around the park. And they are asked to do less, as the Welsh back-line contains several super-strong carriers, while the Irish back-row are asked to do all their normal duties AND do all the major carrying AND shore up a 10-12 axis that can't really take Roberts on the charge. Not only will they get tired, they are also the main targets and easy to shut out, particularly as Ireland appear to have neither the wit or the will to move it wide and try and get a back-row coming onto it at speed aimed at space. Even in these games I'd say Ferris has notably been one of Ireland's better performers. Which is why I don't put too much mileage on Lydiate & co shutting down Ferris & co when they meet. Besides, they're not playing each other, they're playing Australia.
I was initially tempted to put Lydiate into my current pencilled Lions XV. He has a good balance with Warburton, is a very consistent gainline defender, and is very fit and hard working. I think, particularly given that the quality of the Australian backline, defence will be important. It was very 50-50 in my mind at one point - and then I read this
http://www.scotsman.com/news/interv...r-and-former-scotland-international-1-2195602
It's a good read, read it, but I'll quote the pertinent part to my article so you don't have to:
"The only area of concern for me is pure blinding pace because Australia have four or five seriously fast backs."
I don't think Lydiate is slow, he's always seemed a decent athletic specimen to me, but his current main contenders for the 6 shirt are seriously fast. Ferris and Croft would not look out of place as international wingers. And, if you think that a serious amount of attention will have to be paid to pace over hard grounds, the ability to get out and reinforce the backline and (crucially imo) the ability to get back and make that cover tackle, then all of a sudden the balance swings back to Ferris and Croft. Against Australia, it's more important to consider how the blindside is going to go covering back and chasing a blindside-attacking Genia than how well a flanker does at stopping big units smashing at the gainline. Nor do I think the chop tackle is the right tactic for Australia, who'll be happy to risk the odd turnover for quick ball. The choke tackle seems a far better way to go.
And, for me, Ferris over Croft is easy unless Croft really hits his best again. So there we go. I'm picking Ferris as I think his pace will be needed out there.
I also think Ferris is just an outright better player tbh. I can't think of any other blindside who I see force people back in the tackle so regularly. People talk about Lydiate's work rate and tackle count and fair play, it's really good; Ferris is equally good in this area. Ferris made 63 tackles to Lydiate's 43 in the Six Nations (and both only conceded 3 penalties). He's a better carrier, both tight and wide, and while I can't really comment on Lydiate's ball skills, Ferris' are pretty good. People seem to have forgotten that when Ferris was in the Heaslip-Wallace-Ferris combination back in 2009, it was Ferris doing most of the donkey work - and doing it really well. He got into the Lions based on that donkey work. He is a fantastic grafting blindside as well as a fantastic bally-carrying blindside. If you ask me, Lydiate is a fantastic player who seems to be do one facet of the 6 role really, really well. Ferris is a fantastic player who can do just about everything it's reasonable to ask of a 6, combined with genetic aberration athleticism - there are a very short list of players in rugby simultaneously as quick and as strong as him.
Ultimately, I wouldn't be displeased if an on-form Lydiate got in; he's a great player. I think 6 is genuinely the hardest position to pick for in the Lions in terms of whittling down the quality. No one's even mentioned Kelly Brown yet due to his injury - I think he's superb. Robshaw seems forgotten, but he's an excellent grafting blindside. Ryan Jones, great worker, O'Brien's more a blindside than anything else... the list really goes on and on here. But I'd pick one of Ferris or Croft first because I think outright pace is the most important attribute here, and after that its Ferris.
I also don't think we should be so quick to crown Warburton. He's the forerunner, and a superb player, but he was quiet this tournament and both Tipuric and Rennie were better than him. I'd like to see those two (and Barclay if he ever returns to form, and any English bolters over the next season...) push him all the way. I'm assuming its Captain Warburton, but the competition has gone up massively imo.
edit: Statistics from the Torygraph -
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/fixtures/3538935/Rugby-Union-Statistics.html
