British and Irish Lions lock Paul O'Connell believes that there is "savage competition" for places in the starting lineup ahead of the Test series opener with Australia on Saturday.
The 33-year-old, who skippered the side on their 2009 travels, looks likely to start the match for the tourists alongside Alun-Wyn Jones despite being pushed for their places by Ian Evans, Geoff Parling and Richie Gray.
Despite appearing in the last six Lions Test matches, the Ireland international is taking nothing for granted prior to the clash.
"Every tour has been different," O'Connell told Sky Sports News. "The dressing room is a lot quieter than on previous tours. There isn't a hell of a lot of talk coming up to games. There is no bravado or talk. There is savage competition for places, and guys are very eager to play as well as they can individually.
"I think if you look at the back-line and the way the backs have been playing it's certainly a step up. Forwards-wise, I think we've performed really well as well. We've carried well, done well at the breakdown at times and it's as good as any team I've been on, but you don't really know until you get to the Tests.
"I was on the tour in 2005, and to this day it's still probably the toughest rugby experience of my life. I had this big expectation of what a Lions Tour was going to be. Unfortunately, I didn't play well. A lot of us didn't play well, and it was a very tough place to be after the tour. 2009 was a little different, but at the same time it was a missed opportunity. For a lot of guys it's like the World Cup. It's your shot at forever, that kind of thing."
The Lions face the Brumbies on Tuesday before taking on Australia on Saturday.
Matt Cotton
