'Mouthguards in': tensions rise at Wallabies training
Exacting revenge is not the motivation as the Wallabies admit to having one eye on Fiji and another on the British and Irish Lions ahead of a high-stakes season-opening Test in Newcastle.
The countdown is well and truly on until the July 6 clash with Fiji at MacDonald Jones Stadium, where Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt will be casting a discerning eye over those fortunate enough to get first crack this year in the gold jumper.
The opening Test of the showpiece series against the touring Lions will take place 13 days later in Brisbane.
It should be no surprise then that star fullback Tom Wright conceded competition for spots in the 23-man team to tackle the Lions for the first time since 2013 was starting to really heat up at training.
"That was our fourth field session today," Wright said after Friday's robust run in freezing Newcastle.
"So we've had four pretty decent licks and looks at each other in terms of combinations starting to build and combinations trying to force Joe and the coaching staff's hand in terms of 'look at me and I'm available for selection'.
"A few things are heating up for training and (it's hard) just keeping a lid on it until we get mouthguards in and have a real good look at each other, which is nice.
"Any time you come together you get the best out of yourselves because you know you've got to be on your game, because the talent around us is the best in the country."
The fullback frontrunner, Wright ranks the opportunity to face the Lions above playing in the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
"The Lions tour is probably second to none in terms of obviously that 12-year gap," he said.
"You get a lick and then it goes away for 12 years and then it comes back around again.
"So it's probably bolted in there at No.1 in terms of how cool the spectacle they're going to bring is and how exciting that opportunity is."
Fiji beat the Wallabies for the first time in 69 years to all but eliminate Australia from the last World Cup.
But with so much on the line this time around, the Wallabies insist redemption is not the driving factor to topple the Pacific Islanders in the two teams' first meeting since.
"It hasn't been mentioned, being an avenging game," Wright said.
"But our first hit-out of the year is going to be super exciting. We know the talent the Fijians have got."
Exacting revenge is not the motivation as the Wallabies admit to having one eye on Fiji and another on the British and Irish Lions ahead of a high-stakes season-opening Test in Newcastle.
The countdown is well and truly on until the July 6 clash with Fiji at MacDonald Jones Stadium, where Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt will be casting a discerning eye over those fortunate enough to get first crack this year in the gold jumper.
The opening Test of the showpiece series against the touring Lions will take place 13 days later in Brisbane.
It should be no surprise then that star fullback Tom Wright conceded competition for spots in the 23-man team to tackle the Lions for the first time since 2013 was starting to really heat up at training.
"That was our fourth field session today," Wright said after Friday's robust run in freezing Newcastle.
"So we've had four pretty decent licks and looks at each other in terms of combinations starting to build and combinations trying to force Joe and the coaching staff's hand in terms of 'look at me and I'm available for selection'.
"A few things are heating up for training and (it's hard) just keeping a lid on it until we get mouthguards in and have a real good look at each other, which is nice.
"Any time you come together you get the best out of yourselves because you know you've got to be on your game, because the talent around us is the best in the country."
The fullback frontrunner, Wright ranks the opportunity to face the Lions above playing in the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
"The Lions tour is probably second to none in terms of obviously that 12-year gap," he said.
"You get a lick and then it goes away for 12 years and then it comes back around again.
"So it's probably bolted in there at No.1 in terms of how cool the spectacle they're going to bring is and how exciting that opportunity is."
Fiji beat the Wallabies for the first time in 69 years to all but eliminate Australia from the last World Cup.
But with so much on the line this time around, the Wallabies insist redemption is not the driving factor to topple the Pacific Islanders in the two teams' first meeting since.
"It hasn't been mentioned, being an avenging game," Wright said.
"But our first hit-out of the year is going to be super exciting. We know the talent the Fijians have got."
Exacting revenge is not the motivation as the Wallabies admit to having one eye on Fiji and another on the British and Irish Lions ahead of a high-stakes season-opening Test in Newcastle.
The countdown is well and truly on until the July 6 clash with Fiji at MacDonald Jones Stadium, where Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt will be casting a discerning eye over those fortunate enough to get first crack this year in the gold jumper.
The opening Test of the showpiece series against the touring Lions will take place 13 days later in Brisbane.
It should be no surprise then that star fullback Tom Wright conceded competition for spots in the 23-man team to tackle the Lions for the first time since 2013 was starting to really heat up at training.
"That was our fourth field session today," Wright said after Friday's robust run in freezing Newcastle.
"So we've had four pretty decent licks and looks at each other in terms of combinations starting to build and combinations trying to force Joe and the coaching staff's hand in terms of 'look at me and I'm available for selection'.
"A few things are heating up for training and (it's hard) just keeping a lid on it until we get mouthguards in and have a real good look at each other, which is nice.
"Any time you come together you get the best out of yourselves because you know you've got to be on your game, because the talent around us is the best in the country."
The fullback frontrunner, Wright ranks the opportunity to face the Lions above playing in the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
"The Lions tour is probably second to none in terms of obviously that 12-year gap," he said.
"You get a lick and then it goes away for 12 years and then it comes back around again.
"So it's probably bolted in there at No.1 in terms of how cool the spectacle they're going to bring is and how exciting that opportunity is."
Fiji beat the Wallabies for the first time in 69 years to all but eliminate Australia from the last World Cup.
But with so much on the line this time around, the Wallabies insist redemption is not the driving factor to topple the Pacific Islanders in the two teams' first meeting since.
"It hasn't been mentioned, being an avenging game," Wright said.
"But our first hit-out of the year is going to be super exciting. We know the talent the Fijians have got."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
2 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Waugh confident Lions tours to Australia will endure the test of time
'Through [director of high performance] Peter Horne, Joe Schmidt and myself, we're absolutely aligned on the planning of this tour and ensuring that players have the right exposure to what's an incredible opportunity for them,' Waugh said. 'We know we need to compete, which is why we have Wallabies throughout all our (Super) teams and that's always been part of our plan. 'We've always been very disciplined around meeting agreements that we have with anyone and this situation is no different to any other agreement that we hold.' Meanwhile, RA has presented an offer to Taniela Tupou, but Waugh understands that the tighthead prop is attracting large offers from overseas. A key member of the Wallabies' squad preparing to face the Lions, Tupou has been heavily linked with a move to French giants Racing 92 when his contract with RA finishes at the end of this season. Racing has a history of attracting some of the biggest stars in the game, including South Africa's World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi. If Tupou moves to France, he will face a 26-game season in Top 14 as opposed to Super Rugby's 14 fixtures, not including the rest policy for Wallabies. 'He's a very important player in our system, we saw that through some Test matches last year,' Waugh said. 'I think what you're seeing is the right-hand side of the scrum is critical to laying the platform for the team to play and Taniela has done well in that regard. It's very important going into the Lions series. 'We're working through what post-Lions looks like for Taniela. Clearly, he's got a market internationally. We're working through those elements. Most importantly right now is performance against the Lions.' While Tupou is likely to depart Australia for France, Waugh and his team remain in discussions with two-time John Eales medallist Rob Valetini who has expressed his wish to do a sabbatical in France. 'We're pretty open-minded and pretty creative around how we can ensure that we get the best out of our players in our market,' Waugh said. 'We've seen that with Len Ikitau and what we've done to support Len, which essentially ensures that we keep Len in our system. Loading 'And Bobby V [Valetini], similarly, we have quite an open mind. Clearly we need to ensure that player welfare is front of mind and playing back-to-back seasons in one of the toughest positions in the game is not easy.' All nine matches of The British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia are live & on demand on Stan Sport, with Wallabies Tests in 4K. All Test matches live and free on Channel 9 & 9Now.
The Age
2 hours ago
- The Age
Waugh confident Lions tours to Australia will endure the test of time
'Through [director of high performance] Peter Horne, Joe Schmidt and myself, we're absolutely aligned on the planning of this tour and ensuring that players have the right exposure to what's an incredible opportunity for them,' Waugh said. 'We know we need to compete, which is why we have Wallabies throughout all our (Super) teams and that's always been part of our plan. 'We've always been very disciplined around meeting agreements that we have with anyone and this situation is no different to any other agreement that we hold.' Meanwhile, RA has presented an offer to Taniela Tupou, but Waugh understands that the tighthead prop is attracting large offers from overseas. A key member of the Wallabies' squad preparing to face the Lions, Tupou has been heavily linked with a move to French giants Racing 92 when his contract with RA finishes at the end of this season. Racing has a history of attracting some of the biggest stars in the game, including South Africa's World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi. If Tupou moves to France, he will face a 26-game season in Top 14 as opposed to Super Rugby's 14 fixtures, not including the rest policy for Wallabies. 'He's a very important player in our system, we saw that through some Test matches last year,' Waugh said. 'I think what you're seeing is the right-hand side of the scrum is critical to laying the platform for the team to play and Taniela has done well in that regard. It's very important going into the Lions series. 'We're working through what post-Lions looks like for Taniela. Clearly, he's got a market internationally. We're working through those elements. Most importantly right now is performance against the Lions.' While Tupou is likely to depart Australia for France, Waugh and his team remain in discussions with two-time John Eales medallist Rob Valetini who has expressed his wish to do a sabbatical in France. 'We're pretty open-minded and pretty creative around how we can ensure that we get the best out of our players in our market,' Waugh said. 'We've seen that with Len Ikitau and what we've done to support Len, which essentially ensures that we keep Len in our system. Loading 'And Bobby V [Valetini], similarly, we have quite an open mind. Clearly we need to ensure that player welfare is front of mind and playing back-to-back seasons in one of the toughest positions in the game is not easy.' All nine matches of The British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia are live & on demand on Stan Sport, with Wallabies Tests in 4K. All Test matches live and free on Channel 9 & 9Now.
The Advertiser
5 hours ago
- The Advertiser
'I have enough on my plate': Lions won't take the bait
British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell isn't afraid to give his own players a bake, but the former England forward is doing his best to steer well clear of any war of words with Australian rugby. The Lions kick off their Australian tour on Saturday night when they take on the Western Force in front of more than 40,000 fans at Perth's Optus Stadium. Farrell was scathing of his team in the wake of their shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last week, saying the error-laden effort was simply unacceptable. But he is keeping his powder dry when it comes to any external pot shots or controversies that fall outside of his inner sanctum. This week, Lions chief executive Ben Calveley sent a stern warning to Rugby Australia that it would be breaking an agreement if it didn't release a strong cohort of Wallabies for the various tour games. Farrell didn't bite when asked about the issue. "For me, I've got enough on my plate making sure that we deal with ourselves, certainly at this period of the early stages of the tour," Farrell said. "I understand your question, but I'll allow the powers that be who know all the answers to the what-ifs (to deal with it) and get on with it." And when former Wallabies captain Will Genia launched a grenade by claiming Joe Schmidt's Australian team has "better athletes" than the Lions, Farrell was at his Zen best in taming the waters. "You would expect Will to say that. He's always going to back his own countrymen," Farrell said. "If he didn't, that'd be a story, wouldn't it? "It's going to be constant ... people backing their own, and that's how it should be. "He knows the Australian players better than me, because he's probably played with most of them, so he's obviously very impressed by them. "But I suppose he's not been in our camp, either. So it's very hard to judge, isn't it, unless you've been in both sides." One thing Farrell was willing to talk up was the challenge of taking on the Force, who will boast Wallaby squad members Ben Donaldson, Tom Robertson, Darcy Swain, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Nic White and Dylan Pietsch. "The side's a great side," Farrell said. "It's full of plenty of Australians that are in the here-and-now, and people who have ambitions to be future Australian Test players." Irish and Leinster hooker Dan Sheehan, who will captain the side against the Force in what will also mark his Lions debut, is also expecting a big challenge. "I think it's important to know where the opposition's mindset is and how they approach a game that only comes around every 12 years, like the Western Force," Sheehan said. "I'm sure they'll be 150 per cent of what they usually are, and they'll be flying into it. "You mightn't have seen it in tapes of what they're able to produce, but I'm sure that bit of extra hunger can produce some powerful things. "They would have been eyeing this game up since they probably first stepped into that Western Force change-room ..., but I don't want them to think that they're going to be hungrier than us." Farrell has named five Lions debutants in his starting XV against the Force: Sheehan, Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van Der Flier. Four more players are set to make their Lions debuts off the bench. The Force will be without former Wallabies star Kurtley Beale, who injured his hamstring at training. British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell isn't afraid to give his own players a bake, but the former England forward is doing his best to steer well clear of any war of words with Australian rugby. The Lions kick off their Australian tour on Saturday night when they take on the Western Force in front of more than 40,000 fans at Perth's Optus Stadium. Farrell was scathing of his team in the wake of their shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last week, saying the error-laden effort was simply unacceptable. But he is keeping his powder dry when it comes to any external pot shots or controversies that fall outside of his inner sanctum. This week, Lions chief executive Ben Calveley sent a stern warning to Rugby Australia that it would be breaking an agreement if it didn't release a strong cohort of Wallabies for the various tour games. Farrell didn't bite when asked about the issue. "For me, I've got enough on my plate making sure that we deal with ourselves, certainly at this period of the early stages of the tour," Farrell said. "I understand your question, but I'll allow the powers that be who know all the answers to the what-ifs (to deal with it) and get on with it." And when former Wallabies captain Will Genia launched a grenade by claiming Joe Schmidt's Australian team has "better athletes" than the Lions, Farrell was at his Zen best in taming the waters. "You would expect Will to say that. He's always going to back his own countrymen," Farrell said. "If he didn't, that'd be a story, wouldn't it? "It's going to be constant ... people backing their own, and that's how it should be. "He knows the Australian players better than me, because he's probably played with most of them, so he's obviously very impressed by them. "But I suppose he's not been in our camp, either. So it's very hard to judge, isn't it, unless you've been in both sides." One thing Farrell was willing to talk up was the challenge of taking on the Force, who will boast Wallaby squad members Ben Donaldson, Tom Robertson, Darcy Swain, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Nic White and Dylan Pietsch. "The side's a great side," Farrell said. "It's full of plenty of Australians that are in the here-and-now, and people who have ambitions to be future Australian Test players." Irish and Leinster hooker Dan Sheehan, who will captain the side against the Force in what will also mark his Lions debut, is also expecting a big challenge. "I think it's important to know where the opposition's mindset is and how they approach a game that only comes around every 12 years, like the Western Force," Sheehan said. "I'm sure they'll be 150 per cent of what they usually are, and they'll be flying into it. "You mightn't have seen it in tapes of what they're able to produce, but I'm sure that bit of extra hunger can produce some powerful things. "They would have been eyeing this game up since they probably first stepped into that Western Force change-room ..., but I don't want them to think that they're going to be hungrier than us." Farrell has named five Lions debutants in his starting XV against the Force: Sheehan, Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van Der Flier. Four more players are set to make their Lions debuts off the bench. The Force will be without former Wallabies star Kurtley Beale, who injured his hamstring at training. British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell isn't afraid to give his own players a bake, but the former England forward is doing his best to steer well clear of any war of words with Australian rugby. The Lions kick off their Australian tour on Saturday night when they take on the Western Force in front of more than 40,000 fans at Perth's Optus Stadium. Farrell was scathing of his team in the wake of their shock 28-24 loss to Argentina in Dublin last week, saying the error-laden effort was simply unacceptable. But he is keeping his powder dry when it comes to any external pot shots or controversies that fall outside of his inner sanctum. This week, Lions chief executive Ben Calveley sent a stern warning to Rugby Australia that it would be breaking an agreement if it didn't release a strong cohort of Wallabies for the various tour games. Farrell didn't bite when asked about the issue. "For me, I've got enough on my plate making sure that we deal with ourselves, certainly at this period of the early stages of the tour," Farrell said. "I understand your question, but I'll allow the powers that be who know all the answers to the what-ifs (to deal with it) and get on with it." And when former Wallabies captain Will Genia launched a grenade by claiming Joe Schmidt's Australian team has "better athletes" than the Lions, Farrell was at his Zen best in taming the waters. "You would expect Will to say that. He's always going to back his own countrymen," Farrell said. "If he didn't, that'd be a story, wouldn't it? "It's going to be constant ... people backing their own, and that's how it should be. "He knows the Australian players better than me, because he's probably played with most of them, so he's obviously very impressed by them. "But I suppose he's not been in our camp, either. So it's very hard to judge, isn't it, unless you've been in both sides." One thing Farrell was willing to talk up was the challenge of taking on the Force, who will boast Wallaby squad members Ben Donaldson, Tom Robertson, Darcy Swain, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Nic White and Dylan Pietsch. "The side's a great side," Farrell said. "It's full of plenty of Australians that are in the here-and-now, and people who have ambitions to be future Australian Test players." Irish and Leinster hooker Dan Sheehan, who will captain the side against the Force in what will also mark his Lions debut, is also expecting a big challenge. "I think it's important to know where the opposition's mindset is and how they approach a game that only comes around every 12 years, like the Western Force," Sheehan said. "I'm sure they'll be 150 per cent of what they usually are, and they'll be flying into it. "You mightn't have seen it in tapes of what they're able to produce, but I'm sure that bit of extra hunger can produce some powerful things. "They would have been eyeing this game up since they probably first stepped into that Western Force change-room ..., but I don't want them to think that they're going to be hungrier than us." Farrell has named five Lions debutants in his starting XV against the Force: Sheehan, Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van Der Flier. Four more players are set to make their Lions debuts off the bench. The Force will be without former Wallabies star Kurtley Beale, who injured his hamstring at training.
