The British and Irish Lions confirmed their team on Wednesday morning, after it was seemingly leaked to members of the media on Tuesday evening.
South Africa named a strong side to face the Lions in the opening test of the three-match series on Tuesday, two days ahead of when they were originally set to do so.
While Gatland had originally planned to keep his team announcement until Thursday, the Times UK’s Alex Lowe broke what was reported as the Lions matchday squad late on Tuesday evening.
After the Lions officially announced their side to take on the Springboks on Wednesday morning, it was confirmed that the leak was accurate.
Speaking to media after he had announced the team, Gatland discussed the leak and questioned how it happened.
“I don’t know how that happened,” Gatland said. “It wasn’t a hundred percent right, but obviously someone leaked that out.
“Whether that was on purpose or accidentally, or someone has betrayed someone’s trust, whether that is a player or a staff member.”
In order to avoid the same thing happening again for the remainder of the test series, Gatland has said that he will alter how he announces his Lions XVs for the subsequent test matches.
“What we will do next week is name the team to the players and the staff members and then name the team to the press straight away,” Gatland said.
The first test between the Lions and South Africa kicks off on Saturday at 5pm from Cape Town Stadium, where the remainder of the tests will also be held.
You can catch live commentary of all of the British and Irish Lions matches, as well as analysis and punditry from the likes of Brian O’Driscoll, Keith Wood, Niamh Briggs, Alan Quinlan and more on Off The Ball.
The 2021 British & Irish Lions Tour on OTB Sports with Vodafone. Lead Partner of the British and Irish Lions
Download the British & Irish Lions App, Powered by Vodafone, to stay connected to the Lions this summer
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
