Rugby: Brace yourself for the Lions invasion

Lions fans during the match between the New Zealand Maori and the British and Irish Lions in 2005. Photo / Photosport

A Lions tour is a rugby event like no other. New Zealand should be braced for six weeks of drama, controversy, tension and also warmth and celebration as 20,000 fans invade the country with their unique brand of support.

It will be fun. It will be hectic. It will be defining in the way previous Lions tours have been - providing a marker for social historians to take a snapshot of the country to contrast and compare change over the years.

What they will probably find is that New Zealand's rugby supporters are different now to the last time the Lions were here in 2005. Some of the angst and edge has gone because of the All Blacks' two World Cup victories.

That sense of doubt has been removed and most fans have been content to let the All Blacks do the nation's talking and perhaps defeat isn't treated like the disaster it used to be.

Dare anyone say it, there is maturity now and visitors from the UK and Ireland may find their hosts are more easy-going and relaxed than they were 12 years ago.

What the host nation will find is that their visitors haven't changed a bit. There will be no edge among the Lions supporters. They will be here for a good time. Yes, they want their side to win, but no matter if they don't. The party will go on, New Zealand will still be beautiful and the money in their pockets will still need to be spent.

The party will, however, be that much bigger if the 2017 Lions can do what only one of their predecessors has managed and win a series in New Zealand.

Already most Lions commentators have dubbed the 2017 side as every bit as talented as the men who won in 1971. Already, there is optimism about the team's chances in a way there wasn't ahead of the 1993 or 2005 tours.

And there is optimism because England, who dominate the personnel, are in the midst of a stunning renaissance.

They have unearthed talents such as Maro Itoje who they feel is a game changer. They reckon they have the ball playing ability and athleticism to match the All Blacks' forwards and the set piece brutality to better them.

The Irish contingent - again it's a big one within the tour party - have tasted for the first time, victory against the All Blacks. They beat them in Chicago last year and who knows whether that has opened up a new way of those players viewing the All Blacks.

Perhaps in Irish heads the intimidation factor is not what it was and the likes of Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton who were so influential in the USA, are able to deliver similarly commanding performances in red jerseys.

Then there is the continuity they will enjoy in having the same captain who led them in 2013 - a tour in which they were successful winning the series against Australia 2-1.

Sam Warburton is a solid bloke and a class openside with the personality and respect to unite his squad. There will also be a sub text in his story as he would dearly love redemption at Eden Park.

Playing there as captain of Wales in the 2011 World Cup semifinal, he was sent off after 22 minutes for a dangerous tackle against France and effectively ruined any chance his side had of progressing.

He can't go back in time to change that, but if he found himself standing on the same ground, with 20,000 fans in red cheering him to the rafters, he'd just about feel he had put things right.

Those same emotions will be felt by his coach Warren Gatland who felt the pain of that red card six years ago as much as Warburton.

Gatland has enjoyed huge success as coach of Wales since he went there in 2007, but he would dearly love one more big ticket item on his achievement list.

He's enjoyed two Grand Slams and a Lions series victory in 2013 but a win in New Zealand, his homeland, would be hard to top. It would be the defining moment of his coaching career and leave him with a legacy that would be hard to top.