Umaga ready for "fearsome" Lions

All Blacks captain Tama Umaga has warned the British and Irish Lions will be his most fearsome opponents yet ahead of their summer tour.

But Umaga, in England for Saturday's IRB Rugby Aid match, also backed New Zealand to win the three-Test series against the Lions. He told BBC Sport: "It's potentially the most fearsome line-up I've ever come up against. They're awesome. "But I'd back us all the way to beat them when they come over." Lions boss Sir Clive Woodward is set to announce his squad for the June-July tour next month.

When Woodward was appointed last year, it was widely believed he would rely heavily on his former England players. But Umaga said: "He'd be hard pushed to do that now considering the shape of the Six Nations. "Don't get me wrong, England have got a lot of talented guys and I'm sure there are some of them who'll make the Lions Test XV. "But you can't disguise Wales and Ireland in particular. Some of the tries they've scored have been great. I'll admit it'll be fairly awesome lining up against the likes of Brian O'Driscoll."

Umaga will meet O'Driscoll in Saturday's Rugby Aid match at Twickenham, with the Irish captain leading the Northern Hemisphere side. O'Driscoll is among a host of players in the Northern Hemisphere squad, coached by Woodward, that are tipped for Lions call-ups. "It'll be good for us to get an early idea of some of these guys, although a lot can change between now and June," Umaga said. The 31-year-old admitted interest in the Lions tour was immense, calling it "the biggest thing to hit New Zealand since Lord of the Rings". He added: "As players, it's enough for us to be driven by the rarity of playing the Lions. In fact, it's not just us All Blacks - it's the talk of the country."

Umaga admitted the fear of injury weighed on his mind ahead of Saturday's charity game, which features a host of big names including George Gregan, Andrew Mehrtens and Chris Latham. But he admitted the value of the cause - proceeds of the match will go to aiding victims of the tsunami - easily won him over. "The second [Southern Hemisphere coach] Rod Macqueen made the approach, I didn't hesitate. It was great when New Zealand Rugby then gave me the all clear. "Thankfully I didn't know anyone that was involved in the tragedy of the tsunami but you couldn't miss all the horrific reports on the news. "There are so many people that were affected, are still affected and will be affected for a long time. It's just good to know we can do something minor to help out."

- The match will be televised on BBC One at 1400 GMT on Saturday.
