Wales' demolition job on England helps lift the cloud of uncertainty surrounding Lions selection For a long while I stayed loyal to Manu Tuilagi, and the England man will tour and could "train-on," but it is now Roberts for me. At scrum-half it was basically a case of waiting for Mike Phillips to get his act together, which in the last two Tests he most certainly has. Phillips is the world's best, at his best, and, crafty operator that he is, I suspect he has been pacing himself a bit this year. He is of a calibre and stature that winning a Lions tour is the last great challenge for him, and the evidence suggests he is building nicely towards that challenge. In the pack I've always liked the cut of Richard Hibbard's jib at hooker, but injuries have given us so little opportunity to see him tested. Well, he is fit and healthy now, touch wood, and overtakes Rory Best, who has dipped a little by his own high standards, although nothing too alarming. That pair will contest the issue in Australia, with Hibbard, for me, now the frontrunner. Adam Jones is back to his best, so there is no need to waste any further time there, while at second row it's all change. Alun Wyn-Jones has made an immediate impact for Wales on his return from injury and reminded us all what a complete forward he is. Donnacha Ryan's form has dipped, like so many Ireland players, and Joe Launchbury and Geoff Parling have not been ripping up trees in the last couple of matches, so I got onto iplayer the other day and looked at some of Scotland's earlier games to check out Richie Gray again. I had done him a disservice in earlier Lions assessments, Gray was immense for Scotland before his hamstring injury, his workload astonishing, and again with an injury proviso I am putting him alongside Wyn-Jones. The fog is beginning to lift in the backrow, a tad anyway, mainly because it is now quite clear that Justin Tipuric must start the Tests at openside. None of the candidates at No 8 have particularly stood out .. until Saturday when Toby Faletau put his best foot forward and stole a march on the field. Which leaves blindside forward. The two best sixes in Britain and Ireland are Stephen Ferris and Dan Lydiate, but the former is definitely ruled out and the latter is battling to get fit enough to make a case. So, moving on from that, the next in the pecking order, for me, and not that far behind actually, are Tom Wood and Kelly Brown. Wood is a class act whose worth, rather like Brown's, is often only revealed when you review the match tape the following day. The England man has suffered from having to play as a makeshift six but hopefully is being considered as a blindside for the Aussie trip. Which leaves Sam Warburton, excellent for Wales in the last two games after an indifferent start to the Six Nations. Tipuric is the Test seven beyond all doubt so can you also play Warburton at six? It worked brilliantly for Wales against England but would it work against Australia? And where would it leave the Lions line-out at the tail, with my No 8 selection Faletau hardly a specialist jumper either? It's a hell of a call in my book, although I wouldn't be surprised if Warren Gatland was seriously tempted. For now I'm going for a slightly more conventional option and putting Wood on the blindside and, with Warburton not in my starting Lions XV, as of today, that throws the captaincy issue into the spotlight again. The one thing I have never wavered on in this selection process is the backrow situation - and we haven't even mentioned Sean O'Brien and Chris Robshaw, which makes it very hazardous to name a backrow man as captain. I have always thought O'Driscoll is the man and I'm sticking with that. Coming off a serious injury he has still been Ireland's most consistent player this season, his defensive work has been exceptional and the candidates at centre are not exactly queueing up behind him. In BOD I still trust! My Lions XV as of March 18 2013 15 Leigh Halfpenny (Wales) 14 Alex Cuthbert (Wales) 13 Brian O'Driscoll (Ireland, capt) 12 Jamie Roberts (Wales) 11 Simon Zebo (Ireland) * 10 Jonny Sexton (Ireland) * 9 Mike Phillips (wales) 1 Cian Healy (Ireland) 2 Richard Hibbard (Wales) 3 Adam Jones (Wales) 4 Alun Wyn-Jones (Wales) 5 Richie Gray (Scotland) * 6 Tom Wood (England) 7 Justin Tipuric (Wales) 8 Toby Falatau (Wales) My Lions XV on Feb 4 2013 14 Chris Ashton (England) 12 Manu Tuilagi (England) 11 Simon Zebo (Ireland) 10 Jonny Sexton (Ireland) 9 Ben Youngs (England) 2 Rory Best (Ireland) 3 Dan Cole (England) 4 Donnacha Ryan (Ireland) 5 Joe Launchbury (England) 7 Sean O'Brien (Ireland) 8 Jamie Heaslip (Ireland)