The Lions Look to Maintain Momentum in Australia Before Facing the Wallabies
The British and Irish Lions have had a solid performance in Australia, accumulating four consecutive victories. Now, they are preparing for their final match against the AUNZ Invitational XV before their anticipated encounter with the Wallabies. This match promises to be an interesting duel. Although the absence of Richie Mo’unga, due to a hand fracture, is regrettable, the Lions cannot underestimate a team led by Les Kiss and Ian Foster. After a nearly full team played on Wednesday, the Lions have presented a lineup with many changes for this match. For their part, the AUNZ team has 17 players with international experience and an imposing back line.Key Match Information
When is the match?Saturday, July 12 at 8 p.m. AEST (11 a.m. Wednesday BST).Where?Adelaide Oval, AdelaideReferee: Andrea PiardiHow to Watch the Match
The match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK and on Stan Sport in Australia. For radio, TalkSport will offer live commentary, while BBC Radio Wales will provide commentary in Welsh.Alignments
Former England captain Owen Farrell has been named among the replacements, while Ireland’s Tadhg Beirne will captain the Lions for the second time, as Maro Itoje, captain in this week’s victory, rests. Lions head coach Andy Farrell brought his son, Owen, into the team last week following Elliot Daly’s arm injury, which ruled him out of the three-match series against the Wallabies. The 33-year-old player joins the team despite not having played an official match since 2023, due to a season plagued by injuries in French club rugby. The match day team has undergone many changes compared to the lineup that faced the Brumbies. Winger Mack Hansen and forward Henry Pollock, who played off the bench against the Brumbies, are in the starting lineup, while England back Marcus Smith has been kept on the bench after replacing injured fullback Blair Kinghorn in Canberra. Meanwhile, Kiss has named an imposing starting XV for the AUNZ Invitational, which includes a threatening back three of Shannon Frizell, Pete Samu, and Hoskins Sotutu. The team will be co-captained by Lukhan Salakaia-Loto of Australia and Crusaders captain David Havili.Kiss announced their team on Thursday afternoon, with Tane Edmed getting the nod at number 10, in what will be a last chance for the only Test Wallaby to impress Joe Schmidt. While Schmidt will name his Wallabies team to face the Lions on Friday, Edmed could return to contention for a match-day squad spot for the first Test in Brisbane with a strong performance this weekend in Adelaide. The AUNZ match day squad includes 17 players with international experience.“After speaking with all the players, we thought the co-captain model with natural leaders like David and Lukhan would really suit this team and what we stand for,” Kiss said.
Kiss
