‘G'day mate' – Watch Donncha O'Callaghan & Tommy Bowe's hilarious skit as Lions fever ramps up before Aviva Stadium game
DONNCHA O'Callaghan can't wait to say "G'day" to the Lions Tour officially kicking off on Friday - even if his Aussie accent could do with a little refinement.
Andy Farrell's charges begin their 10-game slate
2
The Munster great went on the 2005 and 2009 tours
Credit: @donnchaocallaghan
2
Similarly, Tommy Bowe was a two-time tourist in 2009 and 2013
Credit: @donnchaocallaghan
Ahead of the 2025 edition of the rugby tradition getting officially underway he and fellow Irish legend Tommy Bowe were joined by Lions' CEO Ben Calveley
In order to promote that chat Donncha donned his best Aussie Outback hat and channelled Mick Dundee, Alf Stewart and whomever else you're having yourself.
Farrell yesterday
The headline item from it was that
Read More On Irish Sport
The prop
has not played since
to Northampton because of a calf injury.
He is joined in the replacements by Rónan Kelleher, the only other Leinster player involved because they were involved in
There are still three Irish players in the starting XV with 2021 tourists Bundee Aki of Connacht and Munster's Tadhg Beirne included, along with Finlay Bealham
Aki and Bealham's provincial teammate
Most read in Rugby Union
Farrell has not included any Bath representatives with the side involved in the Premiership final against Leicester Tigers on Saturday.
Lions captain
'I live life on the edge' - Watch Peter O'Mahony storm off after wife Jessica startles him while gardening
'Maro has led the group well during our time in Portugal and then Dublin this week.
"This is also our first opportunity to show what the 2025 Lions are about and what we want to stand for as a team.
'We know that Argentina will challenge us up front and out wide - so Friday night will be a tough contest, but also a great occasion for all the fans.'
After their first outing on Irish soil, the Lions will travel to Australia ahead of the three-Test series against the Wallabies.
Lions: M Smith (England), Freeman (England), Tuipulotu (Scotland), Aki (Ireland), van der Merwe (Scotland), F Smith (England), Mitchell (England), Genge (England), Cowan-Dickie (England), Bealham (Ireland), Itoje (England), Beirne (Ireland), Curry (England), Morgan (Wales), Earl (England).
Replacements: Kelleher (Ireland), Schoeman (Scotland), Furlong (Ireland), Cummings (Scotland), Pollock (England), Williams (Wales), Daly (England), Hansen (Ireland).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
28 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
Stephen Kenny puzzled by recent lull in form as St Pat's suffer ‘underwhelming' start for third year in a row
STEPHEN Kenny is as mystified as supporters with how the Saints' league campaign has gone. But their manager is sure that they can halt the slide. St Pat's face Cork City tonight sixth in the table having won four of their last 13 games — Advertisement 2 Kenny's side have failed to carry their form from the end of last season into this season 2 Pat's currently sit sixth in the table, 15 points behind Shamrock Rovers Kenny's team were among the favourites for the title after last year's finish of a nine-game winning run saw them secure third place and But similar to the 2024 and 2023 campaigns under different managers, pre-season expectation made way for disappointment due to erratic results. Kenny said: 'It's possibly the third season in a row because there's high expectations. 'It's three years in a row where it's been an underwhelming first period of the season but we had an outstanding second half. Advertisement Read more on League of Ireland "There's a lot of expectation on us this year. We haven't matched that expectation and we fell below the level of expectation. 'A lot of people tipped us for the title but we probably hadn't earned that. We have fallen below the level and some players, for reasons I even can't fully explain why, lost confidence. 'That's difficult to understand why that can be, especially when they are training every day and applying themselves. Even for someone as experienced as myself, it's not always clear.' While Monday night's Advertisement Most read in Football He added: 'It wasn't that we were unlucky. We were absolutely excellent. We were at a high level against Derry. 'It wasn't that we had more chances than the opposition in a mediocre game. The level of our play was better than it has been in the last six or seven weeks. Saipan film trailer splits opinion as Irish football fans voice concern about Roy Keane portrayal 'Our passing, moving, dynamism and worth ethic was the highest that it has been in a while. 'The five games in 14 days, they are periods that can either make or break your season. I usually look forward to that. But this is one we haven't done well in and it has gone against us. Advertisement 'We could have done a lot better over those four games and to be honest, we only have ourselves to answer for.' Kenny also bemoaned a lack of luck — with the former Ireland chief believing his side were undone by an offside goal from Candystripes ace Liam Boyce. He explained: 'They had one chance and Liam Boyce was offside heading it. We don't get the decision. 'But we had enough chances to win the game ourselves and we didn't take them. We're paying the price for that. Advertisement 'We deserved to win without question but we have to score goals and they dried up. 'We were always capable of scoring goals and maybe we conceded more than we should have but we have stopped finishing and in the last ten days it has hurt us. 'We have to regroup and get a few wins to put us in those European places going into Europe. 'On the back of three defeats, we need to address that and get a win in Cork. I see how hard everyone works and that has to be reflected.' Advertisement
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
‘It wasn't supposed to be a jibe' – Joe Schmidt clarifies comments about Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipolotu
Debate about Lions' foreign legion rages on ahead of opening Test Rúaidhrí O'Connor in Perth Joe Schmidt insists he did not mean to criticise Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu when he referred to them as 'a Southern Hemisphere centre partnership' when they were selected to play for the Lions against Argentina last week. The issue of nationality has been a major theme in the build up to the tour after Andy Farrell selecting five players who qualify to play for their national teams on residency in Ireland's James Lowe, Jamison Gibson-Park and Bundee Aki and Scotland's Duhan van der Merwe and Pierre Schoeman as well as Australians Sione Tuipulotu and Mack Hansen who have a Scottish grandmother and Irish mother respectively.
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Tommy O'Brien: 'I don't want to be a one-cap wonder'
All things going to plan, Tommy O'Brien should become a full Ireland international in the next two weeks. It's been a long time coming for the 27-year-old. The fact that it's taken the Blackrock man so long to nail down his place in Leinster's starting XV has been more down to his injury record than any lack of will or ability. Just over six months ago, he made what would have been a bold statement when he said he believed he just needed a run of games to prove to the Irish coaches he was ready to make the step up to Test rugby. He's backed up that talk. At the time, he was priming himself for a return from a hamstring injury which sidelined him for three months. He cruelly picked up the injury in the process of scoring a try in Leinster's opening game of the BKT United Rugby Championship away to Edinburgh, and it was one that ruled him out of the Emerging Ireland tour of South Africa. The Irish coaches showed faith in him by giving him a chance to impress for Ireland A against England A towards the end of February and he impressed enough to be brought into the wider senior squad later in the Guinness Six Nations. His form since then has been as good as any winger in Ireland, starting nine of Leinster's final 13 games of the season, scoring three tries and establishing himself as first choice on the right wing for the province, with a highlight reel of moments in both attack and defence. "I've loved my rugby the last few months," the wing said this week, ahead of Ireland's summer Tests in Tbilisi and Lisbon. "I love just getting a run of games. It's something I haven't really had in my career, getting an extended period of games, and thankfully that tied in with the [URC] trophy. "I guess I've known what I can do in training, but it's obviously behind closed doors so the general public wouldn't see it, but I had a bit of confidence in what I was doing, and the fact you're training in Leinster with such high level players, such international quality players, I took a bit of confidence from that and I felt I just needed to get a chance to get a couple of games under my belt." Despite missing three months with that hamstring injury, the 12 games he played for Leinster this season are the most he's ever logged in a season, with his injury history limiting him to just 31 games in the previous five campaign. If there is a silver lining to O'Brien's (below) injury this season, it's that he's coming into the summer feeling fresh rather than fatigued. "It probably is something that potentially stood to me. I think I played 13 or 14 games this year where some guys would be in the 20s. "It's not something I'd trade, I would rather play the 20-something games, but it's almost as if my season started in February or whenever I started playing games. So I'm enjoying that now and the body's feeling good. "Injuries-wise I guess it was weird, I always would have been able to come back and have full faith - it's probably a credit to all the physios - but I never really felt coming back that I was running at 80% or 75% or whatever. "Once I was back, I felt like I had full confidence in myself to be able to do whatever I felt like I needed to do." Now that he's in the Ireland squad, he's planning to stay there. With 16 Ireland regulars currently away on the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, this summer's squad has an inexperienced feel to it, and O'Brien is one of 12 uncapped players in the squad of 32, which will be captained by Craig Casey and coached by Paul O'Connell. And having got a taste of international rugby for Ireland A in February (below), he believes he's ready for the real thing, either on the wing or at centre. "I definitely don't want to be a one-cap wonder. Hopefully this is the start for me now of being in this squad and pushing for places. "Obviously, there's guys away, Lowey [James Lowe] and Mack [Hansen] are away with the Lions, so there's two wingers there for Ireland, but I want to try stake a claim and make myself a mainstay in this squad and try to push [for a place in future squads]. "Obviously there's this summer tour and then you've November internationals and Six Nations and stuff. "I'm dying to play a game for Ireland, so wherever they play me, I'll happily play. "I think I probably have been viewed more as a winger at the moment, but if it's wing, if it's centre, if it's the 23 role, yeah, I'm happy to play wherever. "It's what you dream of as a kid, getting to represent your country. There's 12 of us in here who haven't done it yet, so fingers crossed now as many of them can get that first cap."
