British and Irish Lions head coach Warren Gatland is adamant that he is focussed on monitoring his new recruits against the Brumbies rather than worry about losing more players to injury.
The tourists welcome Billy Twelvetrees, Brad Barritt, Christian Wade and Shane Williams into the side for Tuesday's clash in Canberra amid injury concerns to Manu Tuilagi, Tommy Bowe, Jamie Roberts and George North.
However, Gatland is choosing to focus on the positive aspect of their final warm-up match rather than lose sleep over the negative areas of their current affairs.
"Not really, no," was Gatland's response when asked whether this was the most taxing selection situation he's ever faced as a coach. "I'm excited about the situation we're in.
"The fact you pick up injuries, that's part of the game and it's a great opportunity for other players to come in and put their hands up and that's what's great about the squad at the moment: you might pick up one or two injuries but some people are making the most of their opportunities.
"I thought a good example was the Waratahs game when a couple of players really stepped up. I thought Alun Wyn Jones was brilliant, I thought Jonathan Davies the way he played was fantastic. It's nice to see players when they're under pressure get the chance to come in and do well.
"I think we've got a strong squad and if we do pick up one or two injuries there are a lot of people capable of coming in and doing a job for us."
The Lions face Australia in the first Test of the series on Saturday.
Matt Cotton
