Lions v Australia first Test: What time is kick-off today and what TV channel is it on in Ireland?
Andy Farrell
's British & Irish
Lions
play
Joe Schmidt
's
Wallabies
in the opener of their three-Test series against Australia.
When and where?
The game will be played on Saturday, July 19th, at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Queensland. Kick-off is at 11am Irish time.
Slow Lions build-up finally culminates in Test week
Listen |
37:54
Where can I watch?
The match will be televised live on Sky Sports Main Event.
The Irish Times will also have live updates of the game, as well as reaction, player ratings and analysis from our team of writers.
READ MORE
[
Five areas where the Australia v Lions Test series will be won and lost
Opens in new window
]
Have we any team news?
Eight Irish players have been named by
Andy Farrell
in the
British and Irish Lions
starting XV for Saturday's First Test against Australia in Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, kick-off 8pm local time/11am Irish.
There are also another three on the bench, although there is no place for Josh van der Flier.
As expected, Hugo Keenan starts at fullback, with James Lowe on the left wing and Jamison Gibson-Park at scrumhalf. As well as Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong, an ever-present in the last two Test series, there is Joe McCarthy, Jack Conan at number eight and Tadhg Beirne at blindside flanker.
Conan also played in every match in the last series, while Beirne was a replacement in the first two Tests.
Ronan Kelleher, who wasn't afforded a minute's action four years ago, will make his Lions Test debut off the bench, which also includes Andrew Porter, who missed out on the South African tour due to injury, and Bundee Aki. A little surprisingly, having started the Third Test four years ago, the Connacht centre loses out to Sione Tuipulotu.
In the enforced absence of Garry Ringrose, Tuipulotu is accompanied by Glasgow midfield partner Huw Jones and outhalf Finn Russell, while in addition to Tommy Freeman, there are three English forwards: Ellis Genge, captain Maro Itoje and Tom Curry.
Despite starting only one game on this tour at openside, Curry is another of the four forwards who also started the Third Test in South Africa and thus preferred to van der Flier and the sole Welsh squad member, Jack Morgan, which means the Lions will be without Welsh representation in a Test for the first time since the 19th century.
The bench is completed by five English players, namely Will Stuart, Ollie Chessum, Ben Earl, Alex Mitchell and Marcus Smith.
BRITISH & IRISH LIONS
: H Keenan (Ireland), T Freeman (England), H Jones (Scotland), S Tuipulotu (Scotland), J Lowe (Ireland), F Russell (Scotland), J Gibson-Park (Ireland), E Genge (England), D Sheehan (Ireland), T Furlong (Ireland); M Itoje (England) – captain, J McCarthy (Ireland), T Beirne (Ireland), T Curry (England), J Conan (Ireland).
Replacements
: R Kelleher (Ireland), A Porter (Ireland), W Stuart (England), O Chessum (England), B Earl (England), A Mitchell (England), M Smith (England), B Aki (Ireland)
Joe Schmidt
has gambled on the 22-year-old Reds outhalf Tom Lynagh to fill the void left by Noal Lolesion's absence by handing him his full international debut in
Saturday's First Test
against the British and Irish Lions in Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium.
The Wallabies head coach has also rolled the dice by naming Nick Champion de Crespigny for his Test debut in the absence of influential, ball-carrying backrower Rob Valetini, the back-to-back winner of the John Eales Medal, awarded to Australia's player of the year, who has been sidelined with a calf injury.
AUSTRALIA:
T Wright, M Jorgensen, J Suaalii, L Ikitau, H Potter, T Lynagh, J Gordon, J Slipper, M Faessler, A Alaalatoa, N Frost, J Williams, N Champion de Crespigny, F McReight, H Wilson
Replacements:
B Pollard, A Bell, T Robertson, T Hooper, C Tizzano, T McDermott, B Donaldson, A Kellaway
How has the Lions tour gone so far?
The Lions got an unexpected send-off in Dublin last month, suffering a 28-24 defeat to Argentina.
While the results certainly improved when the pride landed in Australia, some issues have persisted. The wins over Western Force and the Queensland Reds flattered the tourists, Andy Farrell's team putting 50+ points past their opponents on both occasions, but their subsequent victories over the Waratahs and the Brumbies were unconvincing.
Of course, those games were only warm-ups for what is yet to come, so perhaps can be viewed as experiments rather than indicators of form, but they may also serve as a warning that this series may not be the walk in the park that had been expected.
Wallabies warm-ups?
Australia played just one warm-up game ahead of the Test series, facing the Flying Fijians in Newcastle (the Australian one, not the England one) on July 6th.
[
Australia secure controversial late win over Fiji with disputed try
Opens in new window
]
Joe Schmidt's side came away with a 21-18 win, but Fiji can feel a little hard done by after a late try for Harry Wilson was awarded despite there being no clear evidence he had grounded the ball.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
a day ago
- Irish Examiner
Rugby-Heavyweights begin 2027 World Cup squad build in Rugby Championship
With two years to go until the Rugby World Cup in Australia, this year's Rugby Championship offers an early glimpse into the plans of the southern hemisphere heavyweights as they start shaping their squads for the 2027 tournament. South Africa and Australia open this year's championship at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday, while Argentina and New Zealand clash in their round one opener in Cordoba later in the day. South Africa are the current world champions and Rugby Championship holders, and look the team to beat again despite a tough two-test visit to New Zealand, including their nemesis Eden Park in Auckland, where they have not won since 1937. The All Blacks swept their three-match July series against an under-strength France and will have eyes on regaining a title they have won for a record 20 times, boosted by facing their bitter old rivals at home. Australia finished their British & Irish Lions series on a high with a victory in the rain in Sydney as coach Joe Schmidt continues their rebuild until he hands over the reins to Les Kiss in mid-2026. Argentina, a threat to any side on their day but also prone to inconsistency, start again as underdogs but with plenty of bite. With the new Rugby Nations Championship to start in 2026, this will be the last southern hemisphere tournament until a likely shortened version ahead of the 2027 World Cup. Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has used close to 50 players this year in easy wins over Italy (twice) and Georgia, but it will be a step up in quality against Australia in tests in Johannesburg and Cape Town in the opening two rounds. Erasmus has continued to innovate tactics and the influence of attack coach Tony Brown on their style of play has become evident. This Springboks side is vastly improved from the one that lifted the World Cup in 2019, and is arguably also superior to the winning side in 2023. But Erasmus admits a concern as to their battle-readiness after their July canter. "You can look at battle-readiness in two ways," he said. "We haven't lost a player to injury, which bodes well for the Rugby Championship, but none of the matches we played were close. "We could pick from a full squad, and we weren't challenged tactically by Italy and Georgia, but those were physical matches." New Zealand may have swept France, but the general consensus is they are still a work in progress for coach Scott Robertson after he took over from Ian Foster following the last World Cup. They have talisman Beauden Barrett back from a hand injury and it will be interesting to see who gets the nod at flyhalf with Damian McKenzie also in the mix, and ahead of the return of Richie Mo'unga next year. "You've got an Aussie team that played some great footy at the back of their Test series (against the Lions)," Robertson said. "You've got the South Africans. We know how strong they are and the Argentinians on their day are so creative. It's a hell of a competition, very tight and just what we need." Schmidt is juggling several injury concerns for Australia, whose last Rugby Championship title came in 2015, but expects the key trio of loose-forward Rob Valetini, lock Will Skelton and prop Taniela Tupou to be fit for Saturday. Flyhalf Tom Lynagh and prop Allan Alaalatoa remain longer-term casualties. Argentina have several injury concerns too, but welcome back Juan Cruz Mallía, Santiago Chocobares, Marcos Kremer, Bautista Delguy, Mateo Carreras and Ignacio Ruiz from the squad that lost their July series 2-0 to an under-strength England.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
From medical theatre to the rugby arena, Linda Djougang's focus is on successful outcomes
This summer is a rugby summer for Linda Djougang. Contracted to play in the upcoming Rugby World Cup , it seems like a stark contrast that when not lining out for Ireland in the frontrow, she works as a theatre nurse in Tallaght University Hospital . Then again, specific, comprehensive care in a specialised unit could easily describe the work of a prop scrumming down to leverage angles and pressure points. For the 29-year-old, who grew up in Cameroon before moving to Rush in north Dublin as an eight-year-old, there are very real similarities between the theatre and the arena. Timing, process, encouragement, resourcefulness and maybe even triage. Administering anaesthesia is, thankfully, no longer part of the modern game. READ MORE 'Oh massively,' she says. 'I think it is so important. I always feel what I do in nursing is the same as in rugby. For me now, I have experience on the field but what I gain from nursing I can put into rugby. 'Like the team working, being sharp, the quick decisions on and off the field, being precise, quick thinking. I problem-solve and usually that's what happens on the field. 'When it comes to a penalty, what do we do next? When you play, who's going to stand up and make the decisions?' Djougang is a former track-and-field athlete. By the time she was in Trinity College, she had still barely heard of rugby. Then she signed up for tag rugby to meet people. Bang, that was it. Neve Jones and Linda Djougang celebrate Deirbhile Nic a Bháird's try during Ireland's World Cup warm-up victory against Scotland at Virgin Media Park in Cork. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho First she was a flanker, then a loosehead and now a tighthead. She travels to Franklin's Gardens, Northampton, for Ireland's first Pool C match against Japan as the most experienced player on the Irish squad with 48 caps. If Djougang lines out against Japan and then Spain, she will be the only player on the team to potentially face New Zealand in Brighton for the final pool game with 50 caps. 'I think now it is really the mentality and mindset that goes in, it's so important,' she says. 'It's really the mentality and sometimes caps don't represent . . . yeah, you have the experience, but experience is really what you face in front of you. I think last year in Vancouver it really opened our eyes, where we played the likes of New Zealand and were able to beat them. 'We had less caps then. Now we have grown and gained even more experience, and I think it just shows the players sometimes have to forget about the caps. It's more about our mindset and ability to focus on what's in front of us.' Vancouver last year was the WXV1 tournament. Launched in 2023, it consists of three tiers of nations. Djougang and her team-mates were in Tier 1 as one of the three top sides in last year's Six Nations championship. Ireland secured a sensational, last-gasp 29-27 win over world champions New Zealand in their opening match. Replacement Erin King, who is injured and not travelling to the World Cup, scored her second try of the game to level the scores in the final minute, with outhalf Dannah O'Brien kicking the decisive conversion off the upright. The scalp of the Black Ferns was transformative for the Irish team in their thinking and expectations. With the win, the dial turned sharply. 'We were the underdog going into Tier 1 in Vancouver in the WXV1,' says Djougang. Linda Djougang celebrates after Ireland's dramatic victory against New Zealand in Vancouver, Canada, last year. Photograph: Travis Prior/Inpho 'People saw that we were kind of worried going and playing against the likes of New Zealand, Canada and USA – top-tier teams. 'But we came second in Vancouver. No one thought that. I think people saw us then as underdogs, but the fact that we beat the world champions . . . we came from 10th in the world to fifth now, so I think we have lost that underdog title. 'We don't want to be underdogs. I think that we want every team to know that. Respect us because we've shown what we are capable of. We won't be going into this World Cup as underdogs.' The intensity of the group springs from a World Cup four years ago that Ireland didn't attend, a defeat to Scotland in the qualifiers sending the team spiralling into relative obscurity, or, certainly to the fringes of the first order of teams. Ten of the current squad were involved in the game. [ Rugby Ivana Kiripati: 'I am a Samoan girl, born in New Zealand, doing life in Ireland – how cool is that?' Opens in new window ] The feeling then of a World Cup taking place in New Zealand without Ireland was that something hugely important had passed them by. It makes the next few weeks even more freighted and crucially places Ireland back in the centre of the rugby world – a position where the players believe they have a right to be. 'It makes it feel extra-special, especially with the 10 of us that have been through that journey, and we know how we felt in Parma,' says Djougang speaking at the Specsavers Media Day. 'I feel that we appreciate it even more, because we know what the journey was and we know what we've been through. Sometimes, for you to really appreciate something, you have to have that. I think it's something that really connects us even more, the fact that we have now an opportunity to do something that we always wanted.' Four long years of wait and finally a summer of rugby in the World Cup arena.
Extra.ie
2 days ago
- Extra.ie
40 years of Irish rugby failure leave no room for sentiment
Right, that's over with then, now can we get on with what really matters? The 2025 Lions tour to Australia ended up pretty much as expected – a commercially successful, culturally questionable trip that was not as bad as it could have been, not as good as they would have us believe. Indeed, of the 10 Lions tours to have taken place since 1989, you would rank this one only above Clive Woodward's 2005 catastrophe in New Zealand and the 2021 abomination in South Africa that should be wiped from memory. A disappointed Clive Woodward in New Zealand in 2005. Pic:That is not to diminish the individual achievement by the players and head coach Andy Farrell – Lions recognition is the highest point attainable and series victories are uncommon – but for all the foaming excitement that ensued after the second Test, history will be largely apathetic whenever the 2025 tour is raised. So, back to what really matters. This tour arrived slap back in the middle of the latest four-year cycle featuring Ireland's ongoing quest to end their World Cup quarter-final jinx – now extending to 40 years. Opinion is divided as to how this Lions tour will affect that target. Maro Itoje lifts the Qatar Airways series trophy. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie Some believe having so many Irish players and backroom staff on tour can only be a good thing when Ireland return to Australia for the World Cup in 2027. Others make a good case as to why Andy Farrell's secondment on Lions duty was an unwelcome distraction within the bigger picture and why exposing his methods to rival countries could come back to bite Irish ambition in two years' time. A good case has been made as to why Andy Farrell's secondment on Lions duty was an unwelcome distraction within the bigger picture. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile There are merits to both positions but, wherever you come down, the key conclusion remains the same – every decision from this point on has to be made with the World Cup 2027 quarter-final in mind. Beating the All Blacks in Chicago this November? Been there, done that – not as important as winning our first World Cup knockout game in two years' time. Winning next year's Six Nations? Been there, etc. Conor Murray celebrates Robbie Henshaw's try against New Zealand at Soldier Field in 2016. Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland Triumphing on next summer's tour to Australia and New Zealand? See above. Nothing else matters and Farrell has to grasp that reality now or his remarkable coaching legacy will be forever ruined by consistent World Cup failure. And that starts with his selection policy for November. Farrell gets significant praise for his selection acumen over the years – there are many examples of this, notably the elevation of Jamison Gibson-Park in 2021, bringing through the likes of Jamie Osborne and Sam Prendergast and, most recently, having faith in Tadhg Beirne and Tom Curry when form and favour were against them. Tom Curry celebrates scoring against Australia. Pic: INPHO/Dan Sheridan However, there are also examples of selection myopia, when Farrell zeroes in on the challenge directly ahead rather than widen the lens to embrace the full picture. We saw that for the third Test on the Lions Tour. The series was in the bag and no matter how many emotional speeches were delivered about making history and becoming 'the greatest Lions ever', the players were never going to be at the same emotional pitch as they were when the series was on the line – especially not at the end of such a long, gruelling season. Furthermore, there were players like Josh van der Flier, Ellis Genge, Scott Cummings, Sione Tuipulotu, Will Stuart, Mack Hansen, Henry Pollock and Jac Morgan who were worthy of a Test start after excellent tours. Josh van der Flier was worthy of a Test start. Pic:This might have led to cries of disrespect from the hosts but none of those players would have weakened the Lions starting XV and their freshness would most likely have energised a performance that could not cope with Australia's onslaught in Sydney. A similar approach to Ireland's November international schedule could have disastrous implications down the line. The core of Farrell's Ireland team are now well into their 30s and, while it may seem cold given what they have brought to the green jersey, they have to be assessed on the basis of whether they will make it to Australia 2027. If they are deemed unlikely to do so, then they need to be thanked for their service and moved to one side. This country's greatest player Brian O'Driscoll played up until 2014, just a year out from the World Cup, and, as a result, Ireland did not have a settled midfield combination when it mattered in 2015 – a situation New Zealand would never have allowed to happen. Brian O'Driscoll celebrates with the Six Nations trophy in 2014. Pic: INPHO/Dan Sheridan For all their contributions to the cause, there is no point in Bundee Aki (35), James Lowe (33) or Finlay Bealham (33) blocking the path of younger players in November if they are considered unlikely to still be in consideration in 2027. The likes of Jamison Gibson-Park, Tadhg Beirne and Tadhg Furlong are also well into their 30s but these are hugely influential leaders within the Ireland squad and there is precedent for corralling an experienced core to backbone a successful World Cup campaign. England remain the only northern hemisphere side to have won the World Cup and in 2003 they got there on the back of the nous and resolve of the likes of Martin Johnson, Neil Back, Jason Leonard and Mike Catt, who were all well into their fourth decade at the time. England remain the only northern hemisphere side to have won the World Cup. Pic: Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images With careful management, Ireland can do the same with their key veterans, as long as there is plenty of exposure given to younger alternatives to ensure that when Australia 2027 rolls around, Ireland have proven cover in all positions – the key ingredient that's been most consistently absent in previous World Cup failures. However you feel about the Lions in general, and the 2025 tour in particular, this victory represents another landmark achievement for Andy Farrell. Since 2020, Farrell has won two Six Nations titles, three Triple Crowns, the Grand Slam, a historic series in New Zealand, the world coach of the year award in 2023 and now a Lions series. It is a staggering roll call of achievement that already sets Farrell up as one of the finest coaches rugby union has seen. Getting Ireland to their first World Cup semi-final is the only gap yet to be filled and, with the Lions firmly in the rear-view mirror, every action Farrell takes between now and 2027 should be taken with that one knockout game in mind. We are looking at 40 years of failure – there is no room for sentiment.
