Wales skipper wants Lions role

Sam Warburton says he would be honoured to lead the British and Irish Lions during next summer's tour of Australia.

The 24-year-old has been captain of Wales for just over 12 months and has earned plenty of plaudits by guiding them to both the World Cup semi-finals and the Six Nations title. This has seen him installed as the favourite to be handed the armband, for what would be his first Lions tour, following his meteoric rise over the last few years. The flanker almost turned down the chance to captain Wales, as he believed he was too young for such a huge responsibility but says he would have no doubts if he was asked to fulfil one of rugby union's most prestigious roles. "Every British player if they're honest about it would have it in the back of their mind," he said. "But I don't think any player in British rugby would turn it down because captaining the Lions is the pinnacle of a players' career."