B&I Lions forced into late changes

INJURY UPDATE: British and Irish Lions will be without two of their key players for the match against the Sharks at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

Courtney Lawes will replace his England teammate Maro Itoje in the starting XV for Saturday's Lions Series clash against Sharks at Loftus Versfeld.

Second row Itoje has been suffering from a mild gastric bug.

Wales star Adam Beard is called into the replacements.

Elsewhere, Bundee Aki (Connacht Rugby, Ireland) also takes a place on the bench, replacing Scotland playmaker Finn Russell, who is managing an Achilles issue.

British and Irish Lions - revised: 15 Liam Williams, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Chris Harris, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Courtney Lawes, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Jamie George (captain), 1 Rory Sutherland.

Replacements: 16 Ken Owens, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Adam beard, 20 Sam Simmonds, 21 Tom Curry, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Bundee Aki.

Date: Saturday, July 10

Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria

Kick-off: 18.00 (17.00 BST; 16.00 GMT)

Referee: Wayne Barnes (RFU)

Assistant referees: Jaco Peyper, AJ Jacobs

TMO: Stuart Berry