Sam Warburton desperate not to be outflanked by Justin Tipuric

SKIPPER Sam  Warburton is hoping his knee ligament strain will not force him to miss more than the opening two games of the Lions tour.

Sam Warburton

SAM Warburton will be hoping that the medical bulletins on his medial ligament knee strain are accurate and that the injury will not force him to miss more than the opening two games of the Lions tour.

The indications are that he will be fit for the match against the Queensland Reds in Brisbane a week tomorrow.

However, even as captain, Warburton will appreciate that he cannot afford much time on the sidelines. Warren Gatland, the head coach, has made it clear that the shape of the side for the first international in Brisbane will be decided after the fourth match of the tour, against a combined News South Wales and Queensland Country XV in Newcastle on June 11. It would take only the slightest setback to his recovery for the Lions to be faced with a dilemma.

Warburton was ruled out of the game against the Barbarians in Hong Kong tomorrow after needing a steroid injection to reduce inflammation. He suffered the injury ten days ago.

"He was desperate to play, but we felt so early in the tour, it is not worth the risk," Gatland said. "He just needs to keep off his knee."

It is not how Warburton, 24, will have wanted to start the ten-match tour, given that competition for places is at its most intense in the back row, not least from Justin Tipuric, one of nine Wales players in tomorrow's starting line-up.

Warburton will be reluctant to cede much ground to his compatriot, whose game would seem tailor-made for the hard pitches in Australia.

The other serious issue is the heat and humidity, which is forecast to reach 32C (89F) and 87 per cent. Players have remarked about the conditions in which they have had to train. It has been so hot that fans were placed on the side of the training pitch yesterday to spray water in an attempt to keep the squad cool.

"Horrific," Adam Jones, the Wales prop, said. "It's been a shock to the system, the worst conditions I've experienced by a long way. I felt sick at our first training session. You think you're OK, but when you stop running, your breath gets stuck in your throat and suddenly you're gagging for air."

In Warburton's absence, Paul O'Connell will captain the side, reprising the role that he assumed in 2009 in South Africa. He is one of six players in the match squad with Lions experience.

There are several established partnerships, not least in the midfield and the back row. The half-back pairing, though, where Mike Phillips teams up with Owen Farrell, is new, but Gatland is happy with the way they are gelling.

The Times