Eddie O\u2019Sullivan has warned Andy Farrell about overdoing the Irish praise after his comments about Mack Hansen following the weekend\u2019s clash against Western Force.<\/b><\/p>\n
The British and Irish Lions thrashed the Perth outfit 54-7 at the weekend but the head coach reserved special praise for the Ireland wing after his remarkable second half effort.<\/p>\n
Hansen showed incredible work ethic to chase back after the Force counter-attacked following an intercept before kicking ahead and forcing a knock-on.<\/p>\n
It was a hugely impressive moment but one which O\u2019Sullivan felt Farrell<\/a> was unwise to highlight in the aftermath of the game.<\/p>\n \u2018Got to be really careful\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cAndy Farrell\u2019s leaning into Mack Hansen at the weekend\u2026it\u2019s good for Hansen, but I\u2019m not sure if I was in his shoes that I would have done that,\u201d he told the Indo Sport podcast.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause Hansen\u2019s Irish. This is something we\u2019ve talked about before \u2013 there\u2019s so many Irish on the tour. He\u2019s got to be really careful with his words.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re Tommy Freeman and you think you\u2019ve a shot at the Test side and the head coach is talking up Mack Hansen after the first game against the Western Force, you kind of get a cold shiver down your spine that maybe this guy is nailed in as a test [starter].<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not somebody in the media saying it, it\u2019s not an assistant coach saying it, it\u2019s the head coach who\u2019s talking up Mack Hansen. I\u2019m not sure I would have done that.\u201d<\/p>\n British and Irish Lions player ratings v Reds: Excellence from \u2018glistening\u2019 Jac Morgan and \u2018pest\u2019 Maro Itoje stands out but Tom Curry \u2018out of sync\u2019 again<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n There were concerns about possible Irish bias ahead of the tour given that Farrell leads their national team and O\u2019Sullivan is worried about the perception those comments created within the Lions<\/a> environment.<\/p>\n Keep conversation private<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not telling Andy how to do his job, he\u2019s excellent at what he does, his man management skills are superb, but I thought it was probably an unnecessary situation. He could have told Mack all that in the privacy of the changing room. Coaches do that, and they should do that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut if you\u2019re another winger on the tour and an Irish winger is getting singled out early doors\u2026 the fact he\u2019s Irish will play with people\u2019s heads, whether you like it or not.<\/p>\n \u201cI would have said it in the [team] meeting. Because if you\u2019re a winger on this tour and you\u2019re not Irish, you feel you\u2019re one layer removed from your chances. There\u2019s no evidence that that\u2019s true, and it may not be true, but [it\u2019s] your perception as a guy on the tour.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an Irish coaching staff, so if you\u2019re not Irish, you feel you have an extra hump to get over here to get in the Test side. I think that\u2019s something I would have kept for the meeting room.\u201d<\/p>\n