British and Irish Lions lock Paul O'Connell has admitted that he was unsure as to whether or not he would be selected for the summer's tour of Australia.

The Munster man was a surprise inclusion in Lions head coach Warren Gatland's squad, having struggled heavily with a back injury for the past year with his last cap for Ireland coming in March 2012.

However, O'Connell insists that he is looking to put his problems behind him and focus on the tour next month.

"Right up until selection I didn't know if I'd be picked having not played any international rugby since last March and very little rugby since the previous May," O'Connell said. "It was hard to know if they'd even consider me. I hadn't spoken to Warren Gatland or anyone during that time.

"People asked me would I have been disappointed if I hadn't been selected, but I wouldn't because I got back from a fairly serious injury as quickly as I could and played as well as I could.

"So when you give everything you have and come up short, that's just the way it is. There's no point in complaining about it."

The Lions face the Barbarians in Hong Kong on June 1.