Simon Shaw, the London Wasps and England lock, has confirmed he will be fit for the Lions tour, giving head coach Ian McGeechan a much needed boost for the 10-match series.

The squad departs from London a week on Saturday with McGeechan searching for replacements for the injured pair of Ireland scrum-half Tomas O'Leary (ankle) and Wales centre Tom Shanklin (shoulder) to bring his squad back up to full strength.

There had been concern over Shaw following knee pain and he went for an MRI scan which revealed a pocket of fluid on the area.

Shaw, at 35, the oldest Lion in the squad, said:" There was some pain and it was decided to get it looked at now so that we knew exactly what was happening.

"It is not a major problem and I have been having intensive treatment and will be on the plane."

Cardiff wing Leigh Halfpenny was so concerned about his hamstring twinge he sat out the 20-12 win over Munster yesterday to ensure he would be fit to tour but centre Jamie Roberts did play and suffered a shoulder injury.

However, it is not considered to be serious which is another relief for McGeechan following Shanklin's withdrawal last week. Lions captain Paul O'Connell was left out of the Munster side to help his preparations for the tour.