Tadhg Furlong has put his body on the line on three punishing British & Irish Lions tours.And the Leinster tight head prop admits this could be his final appearance in the famous red jersey against Australia in Sydney on Saturday.Furlong could sign off on his Lions career with a feat not seen in nearly 100 yearsGettyFurlong will be close to 37 years old when the Lions head to New Zealand in 2029 and if time catches up with one of the all-time front row greats, he can take comfort from having already cemented his place in Lions rugby history. The final tour match sees Furlong equal the record for consecutive Lions Test starts in the professional era – joining Wales legend Alun Wyn Jones on nine.He admitted: “I probably won’t play for the Lions again but it’s been very good to me. It’s been very good to my career and you want to play well in it. To be honest with you, I just wanted to try to get on tour and play rugby and see where it got me, but it is class to be up there [with Alun Wyn Jones].“I remember I got selected after people were speculating on that first Lions Tour. I was young and I was like, you think of Lions and you think of the players and you don’t see yourself there to be mentioned in the same breadth as them and I probably feel the same way now. You’re still playing for the Lions and it’s not hard to motivate yourself. My motivation is obvious. “I’m kind of leaving a lot of that emotional stuff behind us. Without being clinical about it and you want to give the best version of yourself to it. Sometimes the last memory is the lasting memory you have in a jersey. I want it to be a good one.”As he counts down the hours to his special day pulling on that red No. 3 jersey for what could be the last time, Furlong will use the occasion to ensure he delivers yet again by powering the team to an historic 3-0 series win.A series victory was wrapped up last Saturday in Melbourne as the Lions came back from a 23-5 deficit to win 29-26.He added: “I’ve heard a lot of people explain Lions tours. I probably haven’t found an explanation in a verbal form that matches how you feel about it as a player. It’s a special thing. It really is. From all aspects. “It’s [3-0] up there. It’s such a hard thing to do, and history tells you that. When you play for the Lions, you understand why, in terms of moulding everyone together and trying to get them on the same track, and the schedule and travel. It’s right up there. “I think you can use it towards your advantage, really. Just the appreciation of it. Understanding what makes the Lions so special or why it’s so special to you. That’s what I was kind of saying. You don’t want to get too caught up and emotional about it because you have to do a job.The Irish international overcame injuries to book his spot on the plane to AustraliaAFP via Getty“After you win a series or you finish a season or you win a cup or whatever, there’s always a time to reflect. We haven’t had a busy start to the week really this week. You always reflect on your journey and what it means.Not just from you as a player but also from the group. So that was nice. To get it done and have a bit of time with the boys and being able to chat about that stuff.Furlong’s build-up to the tour was interrupted by an injury-hit season at Leinster, plagued by recurring calf and hamstring issues, and there were real fears the test match animal would not recover in time to join the squad in Australia.The 32-year-old revealed: “There was a stage this season where we were having conversations with medical staff. It’s like, what is going on here? We need to nip this stuff in the bud”, he admitted.“I’ve never really had a long-term injury per se. I’ve had very healthy joints, knees, backs, necks. I’ve avoided all those things throughout my career, so I am very fortunate. I was very fortunate to get breaks when I got breaks as a young fella.“I obviously came up through a good tutelage of the older lads in Leinster and Ireland, but I kind of got breaks, and that kind of maybe breakthrough year I had in 2016-17 came in time with a Lions tour, which was pure fortune. “Everyone says this group of lads, it’s a great group. You spend your professional rugby life around a lot of the same people.Most successive Lions Test starts15 – Willie John McBride (1966-74)12 – Graham Price (1977-83)10 – Tony O’Reilly (1955-59) and RH Williams (1955-59)9 – Dickie Jeeps (1955-59), Alun Wyn Jones (2013-2021)9* – Tadhg Furlong (2017 – present)8* – Maro Itoje (2017 – present)* = The number of successive Lions Test starts after the third Test against Australia on Saturday“To get to know people from other countries, there’s different stories, there’s different craic. There’s different ways of slagging, nicknames, all that craic, playing cards, out and about, dinner, socials. Off the pitch, that’s great.“Each group of lads and coaches bring a different flavour to a Lions tour. So 2017 and 2021 were similar-ish, obviously under Warren Gatland. And if you want to throw the South African one [during Covid] out of the mix, how does it compare to 2017? I was probably young and making my way through it all and learning it all. “Gats kind of backed me really. He backed Mako Vunipola, myself and Jamie George through each of the Saturdays. I felt pressure. In a rugby country like New Zealand, there was pressure. I probably didn’t enjoy it socially as much as I should have, looking back. Whereas this one, it’s a great group of lads. I suppose I’m very familiar with the coaches. You feel more at ease. Furlong deflected some of the plaudits sent his way by paying tribute to head coach Andy Farrell, who is also his Ireland coach, and has shown faith in the Leinster tight head. “I think Faz has been around the world in terms of life and the lads have a lot of respect for him,” Furlong said.“He doesn’t treat you like a schoolteacher in any way. He treats you like a man. He gives you responsibility, and it’s up to you to take it. He gives you freedom, and it’s up to you to be a good man within that, or a good teammate within that. That’s what I respect about him. You look up to Faz. Farrell is bidding to lead the Lions to their first series whitewash since 1927Getty“As the head coach, you’re also the bad guy that has to drop people and I think there always has to be that little bit of distance there.”With Australia making changes to their team for the final test, there is one player Furlong is warning his team mates to look out for in the scrum and the loose. That man is the ‘Tongan Thor’ – Taniela Tupou – and Furlong said: “ I first came across him in 2018 when he was a young fella breaking through. He was coming off the bench for Australia. He is what he says in the tin, incredibly powerful, dangerous in the scrum and very aggressive.“I would say he is completely different to their other tight heads and poses his own threats around the park. He’s a good carrier and explosive.”