Maro Itoje turns attention to England World Cup glory

Saracens and England lock Itoje arrived in New Zealand as the youngest Lion off the back of a second stellar season - and will leave as a cult hero and an even better player.

The Lions fans adopted Saracens' 'Itoje' chant to the tune of the White Stripes' Seven Nation Army as their personal tour anthem.

Itoje himself excelled on the field, starring again in Saturday's 15-15 draw in Auckland which left the All Blacks series tied at one win apiece.

Head coach Eddie Jones has made no secret of his desire to turn England into the world's best team, and Itoje admitted the back-to-back Six Nations winners can now capitalise on the exploits of Warren Gatland's 2017 Lions squad.

Asked if England can take heart from the Lions' successes in their bid to rule the world, Itoje replied: "Absolutely. Eddie (Jones) is a smart guy.

"He's planning for us to be successful in the coming years so we'll take our experiences from this tour and when we go back to our various countries and the England camp, if selected, we'll use our knowledge to our advantage."

Itoje admitted he has fully caught the Lions bug in New Zealand, insisting he will fight to head off on as many future tours as possible.

"As long as I'm playing rugby and I'm fit and healthy, I'd love to go on as many tours as possible," said the 22-year-old.

"It's been an unbelievably pleasant experience and I've learned a lot, I've grown a lot.

"I've had a greater understanding of what the All Blacks are like and what it takes to beat them than I did previously so I've benefited from this tour."

The Lions tiptoed to the draw courtesy of a late reprieve where referee Romain Poite awarded New Zealand a scrum and not a penalty when Ken Owens was caught offside after a ricochet off Liam Williams.

Opposing captains Kieran Read and Sam Warburton lifted the series trophy together in a bizarre post-match ceremony, that included both sets of players sat together behind sponsors' boards amid the obligatory fireworks blast and tickertape parade.

Itoje admitted the drawn series left the Lions slightly nonplussed at the time - but he believes head coach Gatland's men can be rightly proud of their achievement.

"It's an unusual experience; when the final whistle blew, are you happy? Are you sad? Are you disappointed?" said Itoje.

"So it's very weird after the final whistle as we wanted the win and we didn't get it. But it is what it is.

"A drawn series has only happened twice. No one thought it would happen here, so it's a bit of an anomaly.

"After three games you tend to find out who the best side is, we haven't in this tour but we've learned a lot."

The Barbarians will host New Zealand at Twickenham on November 4, and boss Gatland admitted he would relish the Lions stepping into the breach for an All Blacks rematch instead.

Itoje admitted he would love that opportunity too, but insisted the administration could prove a tall order.

"I'd be very happy for that, but looking at how hectic the schedule is, that'd be very unlikely so I doubt that's going to happen," said Itoje.

"It goes against the nature of touring Lions teams, so it's probably unrealistic but if it did happen, we're all competitive so we'd love that."

Hailing the Lions' achievement in pushing the back-to-back World Cup winners to the brink, Itoje claimed the tourists have now allayed any doubts about their future.

He added: "The players have come together in six weeks, we've taken the double world champions right to the final whistle.

"And we've won one, they've won one so the Lions are deserving of their place in rugby. It will stay in rugby for years to come.

"The players love it, the fans love it and obviously you guys (the media) love it as you're here."