British and Irish Lions 2017: Courtney Lawes ready to answer Warren Gatland's call against the All Blacks

Lawes put in another impressive showing in the 31-31 draw with the Hurricanes on Tuesday

Courtney Lawes is ready to step up if Warren Gatland calls his name (Getty)

Courtney Lawes is “confident” that he will be ready to answer Warren Gatland’s SOS call if the British and Irish Lions head coach decides he is the man to bring the much-needed physicality against the All Blacks this weekend, but for Iain Henderson, he was left to rue a silly mistake that has probably cost him the chance of featuring in the Test series.

Lawes was replaced by George Kruis in the 54th minute and looks to have put himself in the frame for the second Test against New Zealand here in Wellington on Saturday. With Maro Itoje and Sam Warburton already tipped to be in with a good chance of starting the match, Gatland will now use the next 24 hours to weigh up whether Lawes should also be in the side, be it in the second-row with Itoje or from the bench.

Lawes put in another impressive showing in the 31-31 draw with the Hurricanes on Tuesday and, having left the field when the Lions were still leading, is happy with all he could have done to press his Test claims.

“I’ve no idea,” Lawes said. “Just see what happens. I went out and did everything I could. It’s not up to me anymore. I played fairly well today, looking forward to it if I get a run-out at the weekend. I am feeling confident if I do get called up. I’ll lay it on the line like I always do.

“You always want to be pushing for spots. Hendo [Henderson] had an awesome game and I was able to have a good game too. Always want to make coach’s life harder than it should be.”

However, the picture may not be such a pretty one for his fellow lock Henderson. The Irishman had a starring role in helping build the Lions’ lead, with the Ulster forward’s carrying and offloading standing out. It was Henderson who reacted first to claim a loose ball from a high Dan Biggar kick that wasn’t dealt with by Julian Savea, and he offloaded the ball to wing George North for the Lions’ second try that was sandwiched by two Tommy Seymour scores.

The Hurricanes fought back though with a first-half try from flanker Callum Gibbins and added a second less than a minute after the break when All Blacks centre Ngani Laumape crashed over. Then came the pivotal moment when Henderson was shown a yellow card for a dangerous tip-tackle clear-out on full-back Jordie Barrett, and the resulting 10 minutes saw the Lions ship 14 points through tries from replacement Wes Goosen and flanker Vaea Fefita to pull the home side level.

The Lions failed to hold on to their lead in Wellington (Getty)

Henderson knew immediately that he let the team down, and Gatland admitted afterwards that his moment of stupidity had cost them victory. “It was a big moment in the game with his yellow card,” Gatland said. “It was a penalty to us which ends up being a penalty reversed and a yellow card and that’s the game. It was a crucial moment. It’s disappointing because you’re in so much control of it.”

After letting his Test chances slip through his grasp, Henderson himself was left to rue his moment of madness.

“Look I think it was definitely an enjoyable game to play in, for the 70 minutes I played, but that yellow was frustrating,” Henderson said. “It was stupid and probably a little bit of miss-timed rucking, I would describe it as. It was definitely hard for me sitting there and watching those ten minutes, and putting the guys in that tough position.

“For a lot of the boys out there, it will be the last time they pull on a Lions jersey, definitely on this tour if not in their careers. For me, it was about taking it in.

“I thought the fans were fantastic, not only the Lions’ side but both sides. I was shattered and definitely frustrated, with the yellow card more than anything. However, I think a few of the boys just said, ‘enjoy the experience’.”