MICHAEL Lynagh has warned his Australian countrymen they could be looking at a 3-0 Test whitewash at the hands of the Lions.
One of the all-time great Wallabies, the former fly-half reckons the odds are stacking up against Robbie Deans' side ahead of the three Tests.
When asked whether he thought the Lions could win the series 3-0, he said: "I think so, yes. Australian teams in the Super 15 tournament have had quite a few injuries to key players.
"People like Scott Higginbotham, Digby Ioane and a number of other players who would have appeared in the Test series.
"That's hurt Australia and their problem is that they don't have a huge amount of depth. They have 20-odd players who are strong but, as soon as you scratch the surface, they become a bit thin.
"Having seen the Lions perform in Hong Kong, albeit against a weaker opposition, they are a very strong squad with lots of seasoned players. They are physically big and, even as an Australian, I'm starting to get a little bit worried about the Test series coming up."
Lynagh, a World Cup winner in 1991, played against the Lions in 1989, a series the tourists won 2-1.
He added: "We talk about how hard it is for the Lions to come together with all the different nations and the fact they have to gel quickly. The Lions have six games to lead up to the first Test, so they have enough time to get together, Australia have no warm-up matches.
"Yes, they might have played together before but sometimes people are injured and that sometimes means that they won't have played together. So, despite the Lions saying that it's difficult, they will be better prepared than Australia."
talkSPORT will broadcast live and exclusive commentary of every match of the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia, on 1053/1089 AM, DAB and online at www.talksport.co.uk
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