By Andrew Baldock

It is time for the 2005 British and Irish Lions to stand up and be counted.

Four weeks have elapsed since England's World Cup-winning supremo Sir Clive Woodward and the biggest Lions tour party ever assembled touched down in New Zealand.

But they've hardly ripped up any trees during that time.

Few people give them a hope of turning the All Blacks a distinct shade of pale in Christchurch on Saturday, even though it is their best victory chance, given that New Zealand's sole preparation was a 91-0 training jog against Fiji.

The popular perception is that Graham Henry's team will only get better going into the Tests at Wellington and Auckland, suggesting that a win this weekend would set up former All Blacks coach Laurie Mains' prediction of a 3-0 "blackwash."

Head coach Woodward, as he has always done, talks a good game and trots out the usual lines about excellent preparation, world-class players and a hugely competitive environment.

But the spin and press conference-speak - of which there has been enough to bore anyone rigid on this tour - cannot be allowed to mask some distinctly ordinary displays.

This is a Lions squad that struggled to defeat Southland, one of New Zealand's weakest provincial sides, saw off a distinctly ordinary Wellington side and were either level or behind at half-time against Bay of Plenty and Taranaki.

The biggest test so far - New Zealand Maori in Hamilton - they lost, while the star performers during an impressive win against Otago were two players who didn't even make the original 45-man squad, Ryan Jones and Simon Easterby.

The rugby has been often been error-strewn and unimaginative, and everyone, it seems - Lions fans at home and abroad - is waiting for lift-off.

This time four years ago, Henry's Lions had produced a stunning performance to see off Queensland in Brisbane and then won a war against Bob Dwyer's New South Wales side in Sydney, before smashing Australia with an unforgettable first Test effort.

Woodward's army have so far shown no sign of emulating those heroics, although if the spin is to be believed, they are, of course, coming up against incredibly powerful opposition.

"There is no such thing as a weak team in New Zealand," the media are constantly told by anyone in a Lions tracksuit.

How come then, Southland could hardly beat a drum last season, Taranaki last defeated the Lions in 1908 and Bay of Plenty have never managed it?

Then there is the Gavin Henson first Test saga, and his baffling omission from Woodward's match-day 22.

Lions and England legend Jeremy Guscott is among those who has publicly questioned Henson's failure to feature either in the starting line-up or on the bench, despite selecting Welsh Grand Slam half-backs Stephen Jones and Dwayne Peel.

With Jones and Peel in tandem, surely it makes sense to have Henson operating alongside them at inside centre? Er, no.

Woodward couldn't give a plausible reason for leaving Henson out when repeatedly - and heroically - questioned by the Western Mail's rugby correspondent during the packed team announcement press conference yesterday.

Jonny Wilkinson, instead, has been handed the number 12 shirt, suggesting that the Lions will either try and kick - or bore - the All Blacks into submission.

Wilkinson, of course, has nothing to prove at the highest level, having won a World Cup and amassed an England record 817 points in 52 Test match appearances.

As a goalkicker in the pressure-cooker environment of international rugby, he is peerless, which suggests that is the major reason he has been selected for Saturday's encounter.

Injuries have ravaged Wilkinson's career post-World Cup, and he looked chronically short of match sharpness during his one tour appearance to date against Wellington.

Henson, meanwhile, is left to fret over exactly what he has done wrong, with his silky midfield skills and game-breaking prowess being ignored in the name of pragmatism, at least for Saturday's initial Test series flurries.

The Lions, it would appear, have put all their eggs into one basket this weekend - a make-or-break mission to steal a march on the All Blacks, who by Henry's admission, are probably "under-cooked" after not being afforded the same warm-up opportunities as Woodward's men.

If it comes off, then Woodward and his players will be heroes, but such a triumph would fly in the face of logic.

All the cards are stacked in New Zealand's favour, especially with such match-winners as Richie McCaw, Chris Jack, Justin Marshall, Dan Carter, Tana Umaga and new wing sensation Sitiveni Sivivatu all chomping at the bit.

It will be a long way back for the Lions if they lose.

Then again, it would also guarantee some highly-paid overtime for the spin department...

***

Harlequins haven't done a lot right in the past few months, but they are on to a winner by signing former All Blacks fly-half Andrew Mehrtens.

The 32-year-old made his final appearance for Canterbury yesterday, kicking six conversions during a 67-3 Ranfurly Shield victory over Marlborough in Christchurch before heading to his new life in London.

And such was the effortless nature of Mehrtens' performance that it is easy to imagine him sailing through life in National League One as Quins' untouchable playmaker.

If Quins don't make a Premiership return with Mehrtens calling the shots, then there is little hope for them.

***

With Mehrtens now out of the All Blacks scene, the fly-half throne has been taken by his fellow Cantabrian Dan Carter. And what a breath of fresh air the 23-year-old is.

Extravagantly gifted and a man in demand - on the front and back pages for his film-star looks and supreme rugby-playing ability - he is also courteous, polite and seemingly totally unfazed by the media spotlight.

Given that he is a player with an immense All Blacks future, New Zealand rugby's next generation of young players could hardly have wished for a better role model.