Waratahs with 7 Wallabies vs. Lions: Tupou and Kellaway lead the XV

The New South Wales Waratahs, with a weakened team, will face the British & Irish Lions, who arrive with great momentum. Taniela Tupou and Andrew Kellaway lead the starting team of the Waratahs, who will seek to surprise the Lions in excellent form. Despite having the experience of five players with participation in Tests, only two of them, Tane Edmed and Darby Lancaster, have been starters in an international match. Waratahs coach Dan McKellar has given young halves Teddy Wilson and Jack Bowen the opportunity to start the match against the tourists. The Lions are coming off a resounding victory over the Queensland Reds with a score of 52-12 at Suncorp Stadium. This was the second time in five days that the Lions had outplayed an Australian team by a wide margin, following their 54-7 victory over the Western Force on Saturday. The Waratahs finished below the Reds in the Super Rugby table, while the Queenslanders had nine Wallabies players in their 23-man squad, compared to the Waratahs’ seven.

The Reds managed to stay close to the Lions for much of the first half, but then conceded 31 unanswered points in the second half, suffering a heavy defeat. Matt Philip, who recently returned from two seasons in Japan, will make his debut with the Waratahs from the bench. Tupou and Kellaway will seek to prove their worth, after being released from the Wallabies camp earlier in the week. Tupou’s unremarkable season in Super Rugby has left him fighting for a spot on the Wallabies’ bench for the first Test against the Lions in Brisbane in just over two weeks, while Kellaway appears to be behind Harry Potter, Filipo Daugunu and even Dylan Pietsch for a spot in the backs. An almost full Allianz Stadium is expected in Sydney, despite what could be an uneven score.