Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Sam Prendergast and Marcus Smith go head-to-head in Croke Park. tale of two 10s Prendergast v Smith could be a straight Lions shootout in Croke Park Opportunities to impress are becoming limited with Andy Farrell due to name his squad on 8 May. 5.30pm, 4 Apr 2025 Share options THE BATTLE FOR the Lions 10 shirt looks wide open and tomorrow’s Champions Cup round of 16 meeting between Leinster and Harlequins will see two of the leading contenders go head-to-head in Croke Park. Sam Prendergast and Marcus Smith are both in the mix to tour but as it stands, neither would appear nailed-on to travel to Australia. With the Six Nations over, opportunities to impress are limited – with Andy Farrell due to name his Lions squad on 8 May. As such, European knock-out rugby offers a chance to nudge up the queue and with Fin Smith, Finn Russell, Owen Farrell and maybe even Jack Crowley also in the running, the Leinster and Harlequins 10s will be hoping to make their mark this weekend. Marcus Smith finds himself in an interesting situation. He went into the Six Nations as England’s starting out-half but after the opening round defeat to Ireland in Dublin he was shifted to fullback for the games against France, Scotland and Wales, while coming in off the bench early in the round four win over Italy, as Northampton’s Fin Smith emerged as Steve Borthwick’s preferred man at 10. This all came after Marcus Smith, playing at 10, was England’s standout player across the November internationals. It’s not the first time England have looked ready to build a team around the Harlequins player before moving in a different direction, and having been a frontrunner for Lions selection before the Six Nations Smith now faces an uphill battle to force his way in. It’s hard to equate that situation to his experience on the last Lions tour. Across a whirlwind couple of months in 2021, Smith debuted for England after helping Quins to Premiership success and was a late call-up to the Lions tour to South Africa, following an injury to Scotland’s Russell, featuring in the win against the Stormers ahead of the first Test. At that point Smith looked well-placed to accelerate into his Test career but almost four years later he’s yet to fully make the England 10 shirt his own. While he’s had long runs as England’s starting out-half he’s also had periods where he’s been pushed to 15 or used as a bench player – such as this year’s Six Nations and the 2023 World Cup in France, where he didn’t get a single start at 10. Marcus Smith lost the England 10 shirt to Fin Smith during the Six Nations.Guiseppe Fama / INPHO Guiseppe Fama / INPHO / INPHO His talent is undeniable and few 10s are as fun to watch as Smith when he is at his sparkling best as a creative, attacking playmaker, but both Eddie Jones and Steve Borthwick have been unable to build a convincing English attack with Smith as their out-half – not to say he is the sole reason for that long-lying issue. All the while he’s been firmly established as Harlequins’ leading out-half, with his skillset and running threat well-suited to the high-scoring, all-action Premiership. Smith turned 26 in February and is already closing in on 200 caps for the London club. Tomorrow’s game in Dublin will be his 174th in the Harlequins shirt. Jack Conan, on 158 caps, is the most-capped player in Leinster’s starting team. Advertisement And for the second week running Smith goes up against another Lions hopeful, with Finn Russell pulling the strings wonderfully as Bath trounced Quins 47-28 last weekend. It was another frustrating outing for Smith, who was subdued as he moved to 15 after returning from a first-half yellow card. He’ll see shades of his younger self in Prendergast, the budding superstar in Irish rugby who is doing a decent job of living up to the hype. While Smith has represented England 44 times, Prendergast has just eight Test caps to his name having only debuted for Ireland last November. His progression has been rapid, emerging as Ireland’s starting 10 for the Six Nations and enjoying a highly encouraging championship. However, there are a few areas in his game which need fine-tuning and a difficult day against France may have damaged his Lions hopes. Prendergast had a tough day against France.Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO We know Farrell is a fan, having quickly brought him into the Irish set-up and handing him his first Test caps, but it would still be a major vote of confidence if he were to bring the 22-year-old on tour given the Leinster man is not as polished as his direct competition. Prendergast is still learning his trade at the highest level but he’s already become essential to Leinster’s plans, fending off Ross Byrne, Ciarán Frawley and Harry Byrne to establish himself as the province’s first-choice 10. He has the flair and flashes of skill to get a crowd off their seats, but it will be fascinating to see how he handles his first real experience of senior play-off rugby – tomorrow marks the Kildare man’s first time starting a knock-out game for Leinster. The province are heavy favourites to progress against Harlequins but as this competition progresses and the margins get tighter, Prendergast’s game management and big-game temperament will become increasingly important. Tomorrow, Prendergast should have a good platform to run the Leinster attack and he’ll aim to use his strong kicking game to keep his team playing in the right areas of the pitch. Smith will likely have a different remit and could be fighting against the tide as he tries to use his game-breaking qualities to crack the Jacques Nienaber defence. Orchestrating an unlikely Quins win in Dublin would certainly further his case in that intriguing Lions selection battle, but with Leinster naming a stacked team for this round of 16 clash, the stage looks set for Prendergast to shake off a frustrating end to his first Six Nations campaign. 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