Munster’s Tómas O’Leary has likely seen his Lions dreams shattered after a suspected broken ankle just three days after the squad announcement included him as one of three selected scrum-halves. The injury occurred with just 10mins on the clock as O’Leary found himself crushed at the breakdown.

Munster, playing Llanelli Scarlets in their first game since the squad announcement completed the game with Peter Stringer at scrum-half, eventually running out convincing victors. O’Leary’s injury only serves to highlight the considerable potential for injury between now and the departure of the touring squad. With the Magners League, Guinness Premiership and the Heineken Cup all reaching their crescendo’s in the coming weeks, Tómas O’Leary may not be the last player to have the chance snatched by injury.

O’Leary’s Munster counterpart Peter Stringer, England’s Danny Care, Dwayne Peel of Wales and Scottish duo Mike Blair and Chris Cusiter are all possibilities to replace the Irish man if his injury does prove to be as serious as expected.

We wish him all the best with his recovery.

Hello and welcome to Pride Of Lions.co.uk the unofficial website of The British & Irish Lions. Today is Tuesday 21st April and in a little under 12hrs, Ian McGeechan will announce the 2009 Lions touring party to travel to South Africa. The press are already widely reporting Paul O’Connell as the tour captain and we will have live coverage during the squad announcement at 1.30pm GMT.

Today we are also launching the site, ready for all the news and building excitement. Pride Of Lions will be growing rapidly over the next few weeks, so please check back regularly. Soon you’ll be able to find complete player profiles, venue information, fixture lists, match reports, squash updates and any other news that is note-worthy or of interest.

Pride Of Lions is a supporters site run by a supporter. While we’ll be offering all the same detailed news as other Lions websites and news portals, Pride Of Lions will also feature original editorial and feature articles. If you’re a keen rugby fan with a good knowledge of the game and an interest in journalism, get in touch. We’re actively looking to recruit.