OPINION: Schmidt can release more Wallabies to clubs but will that make Lions tour competitive?

Thursday, 26 June 2025 at 09:34

byHarry Tovey

The British and Irish Lions have warned Australian head coach Joe Schmidt that he will be in breach of the tour agreement if players are not released for non-Test matches.

However, Australian rugby is not hitting the heights of the golden years, with both Aussie Rules and Rugby League outperforming it in terms of match attendances and coverage. With that said, it’s no surprise that Schmidt, who may tactically be playing mind games, wants to protect his players for the crucial Test matches against the Lions.

The Wallabies sit eighth in the World Rugby rankings, with Scotland and England above them. Fiji, which they play on July 6, follows closely behind in ninth.

In both the 2023 and 2024 Rugby Championship seasons, they finished in last place. More agonisingly, at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, albeit under Eddie Jones, they did not advance to the knockout stage of the competition. They even got put aside by Wales 40-6, which is the Welsh side’s most significant victory deficit since playing Canada (68-12) in 2021.

They do have some positives to take into the three-Test series, as last autumn they avenged that World Cup defeat against Wales in Cardiff and also recorded an impressive 47-37 victory against England. But before those wins, something which stained Australian rugby last year was that they fell to their worst defeat in their history, 67-27 in Santa Fe against Argentina.

So the Lions’ match against the Western Force on Saturday in Perth, out of all of the Super Rugby franchise teams, will most likely have the largest number of Wallabies in the lineup. And they”ll need it.

Schmidt released five players: Nic White, Darcy Swain, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Dylan Pietsch and Tom Robertson. However, they are the worst-performing franchise side, having concluded their Super Rugby campaign in ninth place with only Fijian Drua and Highlanders behind them.

The Lions have had impressive victories over the Western Australian side. Back in 2001, they recorded a brutal 116-10 win, and on their last visit in 2013, captain Brian O’Driscoll bagged a brace as they triumphed 69-17.

With Farrell frustrated with the errors in the tour’s opener in Dublin last week against Argentina, the Lions are expected to be far more accurate with their work, and the likely XV, which will be named tomorrow, will be more cohesive as a heavy contingent of Leinster players are set to be picked.

Aussie Rules is the primary sport in the state, so it’s no surprise that Saturday’s encounter will not be a sellout. Quite frankly, it’s not even close. Forty-five thousand people are expected inside Optus Stadium, which has a capacity of sixty-two thousand.

So with all that said, if this time around Down Under, Australia and its franchises don’t offer Andy Farrell’s side a challenge, the Lions may begin to look elsewhere.

Three-time tourist and now the Lions chairman, Ieuan Evans, said:

“I think what’s clear is that we are an elite sporting touring team and we need to be challenged and tested in our preparations towards the Tests.”

Unlike their last tour to Australia, when they stopped over in Hong Kong to play the Barbarians, they were challenged and tested in their 28-24 defeat to Argentina, which probably gave head coach Farrell a clear perspective before landing in Perth—a competitive match, something that probably won’t happen until the first Test on July 19.

The Lions’ chief executive, Ben Calveley, on why the tour matches need to be competitive, said: “It is really important that these games are competitive.

“It’s not just for a performance standpoint, the players do want to test themselves and build towards the Test series.

“It’s also right for the fans, partners, and broadcasters who are all expecting competitive fixtures and for the rugby-loving public. That would be their expectation as well.”

In the lead up to the first Test, Farrell’s men will take on Queensland Reds (2 July), NSW Waratahs (5 July) and ACT Brumbies (9 July).

As previously stated, the Wallabies face Fiji in a warm-up before the Test series, and head coach Schmidt has already indicated that Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Len Ikitau, who play for the Waratahs and the Brumbies, respectively, are unlikely to feature for their clubs.

These two aren’t the only ones as Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou play for the Waratahs and are expected to face the Lions only in the Test matches.

“There’s some serious plate-spinning at the moment, trying to get ready,” Schmidt explained to the Sydney Morning Herald.

“The ambition is there will be some going back to the Reds and some going back to the Waratahs.

“But in reality, the Lions have got their squad. Are they going to play their best team every week?

“That’s unlikely. So are we going to play all the same players every week?

“We play Fiji on a Sunday and the Waratahs play on a Saturday night. So it’s not like you can play Saturday and Sunday night against a team like the Lions. It would be counter-productive.

“I’m not sure whether Andy [Farrell] was part of that discussion or whether it was just coming from the CEO, but I’ve read the tour’s agreement, and it’s having the best intentions to have the highest-quality players available and playing.

“It’s not as specific as saying every Wallaby from a state or a club has to be available to play every game that the Lions come through on.”

If the Lions were to breeze through this tour Down Under and record a 3-0 series victory with sorrowing one sided tour matches, this would have a direct impact on the future of Australian rugby union.

Look no further than the 2027 World Cup, which may need to rely on overseas fans to support it. Schmidt ain’t fighting to save his job this summer, he’s fighting to save the sport in Australia.