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ESPN's readers poll: The British & Irish Lions XV to face the All Blacks

After six tour games and several weeks of debate the British & Irish Lions will finally reveal their Test side to take on the All Blacks on Saturday.

All 41 initial squad members who jetted in to New Zealand at the start of June have started at least one game, while Stuart Hogg and Ross Moriarty have succumbed to injury.

Some players have taken their chances while others are yet to live up to expectation.

At the start of the month we ran an ESPN poll asking you to step into Warren Gatland's shoes and pick the Lions' XV for the All Blacks Test series.

So after three weeks and thousands of votes these are the 15 players you'd like to see start against the New Zealand at Eden Park.

Backs

15. Liam Williams (Wales)

Williams makes it at fullback by virtue of Stuart Hogg's misfortune. Hogg was head and shoulders above the rest in our back three poll with 485 votes but an unlucky facial injury ended any chances of featuring in the Test series. Williams showed what he could do with some nice touches against the Chiefs but it appears unlikely he'll back up four days later.

14. Jack Nowell (England)

The Exeter Chief gets the nod on the right wing despite a shaky tour to date. Plenty of votes came Nowell's way after a brilliant showing in the Aviva Premiership final but a forgettable performance for the Lions against the Blues put the breaks on calls for a Test start. Nowell just edged out Anthony Watson who looks set to start in Auckland.

13. Robbie Henshaw (Ireland)

Another player who looked nailed on for Test duties prior to the tour but has seen his chances go backwards at a rate of knots. Three outings for the midweek team would suggest he's not in the frame, but the Leinster centre comfortably beat out Jonathan Joseph, Jonathan Davies and Ben Te'o in our poll.

12. Owen Farrell (England)

Farrell made a brief and injury enforced cameo at inside centre against the Crusaders but has largely been used at fly-half to great effect. The readers clearly believe a Sexton-Farrell partnership is the best option against the All Blacks though with the England and Saracens playmaker getting the most votes out of any player in the midfield.

11. George North (Wales)

Warren Gatland is a huge admirer of North and it appears the fans are too with the Welsh winger pulling in 435 votes. Hasn't been in vintage form on the tour to date with Elliot Daly's latest performance against the Chiefs putting the pressure on for the first Test. Would be quite the surprise if he wasn't picked.

10. Johnny Sexton (Ireland)

Has taken a while to get going in New Zealand but put in an assured performance in partnership with Conor Murray against the New Zealand Maori to signal he is good to go if called upon for the first Test. Sexton topped the fly-half poll with 368 votes, while Farrell got 268 votes in the No. 10 position.

9. Conor Murray (Ireland)

The scrum-half poll was a no contest with Murray pulling in four times as many votes as Wales' Rhys Webb. The Munsterman has showed some of the form that helped Ireland to the famous win over the All Blacks in November with his crisp pass, organisation and box kicking a huge part of the Lions blueprint.

Forwards

1. Mako Vunipola (England)

Another fan favourite who looks to be locked in to start in Auckland. Vunipola has been sublime in the tight and at scrum time for the Lions on tour, forming a strong partnership with Saracens and England teammate Jamie George and Ireland's Tadhg Furlong in the front row.

2. Jamie George (England)

George might not start for his country, but he's now a near certainty to make the Lions XV for the first Test. His lineout throwing has been right on the money so far on the tour which has seen him edge out Ken Owens and Rory Best as the number one hooker.

3. Tadhg Furlong (Ireland)

One of the most popular players in the polls. The Leinster tighthead picked up 572 votes, more than five times as many as England's Dan Cole. Furlong has been brutal on defence while he already got a win at the scrum over Crusaders prop Joe Moody, who he is set to tango with again on Saturday.

4. Maro Itoje (England)

The youngest member of the Lions touring squad was another overwhelming winner at the polls. Itoje showed all his qualities in a trademark performance against the New Zealand Maori that now has him in line to edge the experience of Alun Wyn Jones for a starting spot in the Tests.

5. George Kruis (England)

His strength at the set piece can't be understated while his combination with Saracens teammates Itoje and George has made the transition to the Lions squad seamless. It's quite the turnaround for Kruis having missed the entire Six Nations with injury.

6. CJ Stander (Ireland)

The back row is the most hotly contested of positions and this was reflected in the fan vote. Stander topped the voting but seems set to miss out on the starting XV in the Tests and could be overlooked for a spot on the bench, with his Munster teammate Peter O'Mahony rocketing into contention.

7. Sam Warburton (Wales)

Plenty of votes came in for the Lions tour captain as the squad departed for New Zealand but it's dried up since Warburton has battled form and niggling injuries. Still, the readers think he is a better option than form openside Sean O'Brien-- but this might not be reflected in Wednesday's team announcement.

8. Taulupe Faletau (Wales)

After his cousin Billy Vunipola withdrew from the Lions squad with injury, Faletau has made every post a winner on tour at the back of the scrum. Has been strong both with and without the ball, and has the support of the fans with 443 votes.

NOTE: All the vote numbers were at the time of writing.