England rugby captain Dylan Hartley has been given a boost after a bowling trip with his team-mates as Warren Gatland may include him in his British and Irish Lions squad
The hooker has only played 101 minutes in the Six Nations so far against France and Wales as he looks to get back to match fitness
LIONS boss Warren Gatland has given under-fire England skipper Dylan Hartley a huge boost ahead of the summer tour to New Zealand – claiming he is just short of a gallop.
The hooker has been hooked early in both of England’s Six Nations games and played just 101 minutes in clashes with France and Wales before being replaced by Jamie George.
Gatland was forced to leave Hartley out of the last Lions tour to Australia, in 2013, after picking him in his original squad. The front rower copped an 11-week ban for swearing at ref Wayne Barnes in the Premiership final and was left at home.
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Hartley added another six weeks in the cooler to his charge sheet when he was suspended for high-tackling Leinster’s Sean O’Brien in Northampton’s Champions Cup clash in December and did not play until the French game on 4 February.
Eddie Jones could have let his skipper play for Northampton this weekend but insists Hartley is better off hitting the gym in England camp.
But Gatland reckons ring rusty Hartley will only get better after another week’s fitness ahead of the game against the Italians and refuses to rule him out of a crack at finally getting on a Lions tour.
Gatland said: “He has not done anything wrong in this campaign so far and he is still getting up to game speed. It is hard to have six weeks off and a break and come into Test match rugby.
“He has been out for quite a while and he did well in the first game against France when you are pumped up and the adrenaline was going. It was a pretty physical game on Saturday so I think they made the change early. Now he has the chance to get some extra conditioning.”
Gatland has already been to Six Nations games in Edinburgh, Rome, Cardiff and Paris as he starts to pencil in his squad for the summer trip to New Zealand.
And Wales’ flanker Sam Warburton, skipper in 2013 in Australia, is leading the charge for a back row spot – even if he is not captain.
Warburton gave up the Welsh captaincy ahead of the Six Nations and his form has been off the scale in Wales’ opening two games against Italy and England making him a front-runner for the plane to Auckland.
Gatland added: “He has been outstanding in the first couple of games in terms of the way that he has played and competed and brought physicality.
“In potentially crappy weather conditions in New Zealand you need someone who can get over the ball, compete and slow things down and Sam is able to do that.
“New Zealand have three or four open sides who are very strong at the breakdown and you have to have someone who can do that.”