"Blair Kinghorn may miss Australia Tests as Farrell calls for Lions' better performance"

The British & Irish Lions are dealing with fresh concerns over their full-back options ahead of the first Test in Brisbane next Saturday. With Elliot Daly already ruled out, Scotland’s Blair Kinghorn is also a doubt for the series after being forced off in the first half of the Lions' 36-24 win over the Brumbies.

Kinghorn, who was widely tipped to start at full-back, played just 25 minutes before leaving the field, and the team is now assessing the extent of the injury. "He took a knock to the knee,” said Lions head coach Andy Farrell. “He kept going for a while, but there was no point pushing him further.”

Farrell said he was not anticipating the worst “at this stage” and described Kinghorn as “in good spirits” after the match.

The squad now travels to Adelaide for their next match against the Invitational Australia & New Zealand XV on Saturday and will urgently seek clarity on Kinghorn’s condition. “It’s late, we have an early flight, and I’m not sure about the medical plan yet, but we’ll figure it out,” Farrell added.

If Kinghorn is unavailable, Hugo Keenan is the likely replacement, though he has played just one tour match due to illness.

The way Kinghorn struck the turf in frustration when injured suggested the issue could be serious. His absence would leave Farrell with limited specialist depth in a key position. Had Daly been replaced last week by another back-three player rather than Owen Farrell, the Lions would already have additional full-back cover in Australia. As it stands, Wales’ Blair Murray, Ireland’s Jamie Osborne, or England’s Freddie Steward could come into consideration if needed.

Farrell, however, remains optimistic despite another inconsistent performance marked by breakdown struggles and turnovers. He suggested the team has been holding back tactically “quite a bit” and acknowledged that their approach to rucks in the warm-up games will need adjusting for the Tests.

Ollie Chessum and Garry Ringrose improved their chances of Test selection, while Farrell was pleased with the form of fly-half Finn Russell and captain Maro Itoje.

“We’re in a decent position as we’re performing well in certain areas,” Farrell said. “But we must improve everywhere. Winning while seeing where we need to get better puts us in a good spot for the next 10 days.”

Farrell also maintained that other squad members can still play their way into Test contention. “I wasn’t joking. People might speculate about my selections, but I meant what I said. We’re challenging ourselves by testing different approaches.”