Wilkinson mobbed as tour begins

Jonny Wilkinson was mobbed when he arrived in Auckland this morning as the British and Irish Lions began a seven-week odyssey they hope will end with a Test series victory over the All Blacks.

Lions captain Brian O'Driscoll and head coach Sir Clive Woodward led the squad out of a side door at Auckland airport, where they were greeted by the cheers and chants of an enthusiastic band of red-clad supporters.

The players and management spent 15 minutes signing autographs, though Wilkinson eventually had to be coaxed away by Lions staff to join the rest of the squad on two buses that carried them on to their hotel.

As the players were driven out of the airport, with a Lion mascot on the front dashboard, a sole All Blacks supporter performed the haka, laying down the challenge for the weeks that lie ahead.

That challenge will be reinforced on Sunday when the squad heads to Rotorua for a traditional Maori welcome and then begins in earnest on 4 June, when O'Driscoll is expected to lead the Lions in their tour opener against Bay of Plenty.

The Lions began their 2005 campaign with a disappointing 25-25 draw with Argentina in Cardiff on Monday but arrived in New Zealand confident of reaching their peak when the Test series begins in Christchurch on 25 June. "A lot has been said about Argentina but you have to remember you don't play Tests at the beginning of the tour, you play them at the end when everyone has been together," Neil Back said just before the squad's departure.