- Stormers 3-49 British & Irish Lions
- Lions captain plays after recovering from dislocated shoulder
The odds on Alun Wyn Jones kicking off the Test series for the British & Irish Lions looked impossibly long three weeks ago but the returning tour captain is back in the game. Twenty six minutes on the field in a lop-sided victory over another mediocre South African provincial side may not sound much but as far as the Lions management are concerned it could well be enough to see Jones parachuted straight into the starting XV for Saturday’s first Test.
It was hard not to wince every time the Wales captain took any contact but his previously dislocated left shoulder is still intact and he has survived to fight another day. While Jones did nothing overly spectacular, he looked in no apparent discomfort and the chances of him slotting into the starting second-row alongside Maro Itoje must now be high. Other clear plusses were the energetic performances of man of the match Luke Cowan-Dickie and scrum-half Ali Price, both of whom did as much as they possibly could to convince Warren Gatland to start them next week.
