The England hooker has proved his worth in the past six months but may struggle to rally players beneath his banner.
Eddie Jones is loving his return to Australia. He has taken his Grand Slam winners Down Under and captured England’s first ever series win.
He has taken on Michael Cheika and left his old Randwick clubmate stewing. This weekend, his side can make it a clean sweep.
Jones has gone so far as to rule himself out of leading the British & Irish Lions in New Zealand, next summer, despite the fact that Warren Gatland is the presumptive coach after his series win over the Wallabies in 2013. Joe Schmidt is highly-rated by the Lions’ brain trust too.
In a BBC interview, Jones has put up a man who he believes would be an ideal candidate to lead the Lions. He said:
“He has clearly done a good job leading England – he has got the ability to develop relationships with people – and therefore he would be a great candidate for the Lions job.”
Hartley is a combative player and a natural leader. He is as respected for his performances as he is disliked for his disciplinary issues.
Dylan Hartley fact #634: He blocked us on Twitter after we wrote this article https://t.co/jGGCfiCWFI
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) January 25, 2016
Winning a Lions series is about shedding tribalism and uniting for a common cause.
Hartley must surely be considered for the role but there are a few other likely lads that will be pressing their case over the next 12 months – Sam Warburton, Rory Best, Greig Laidlaw and Peter O’Mahony to name four.
Would you be happy with Hartley as a Lions captain?
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