Western Force v Lions preview, teams and how to follow
Western Force v British and Irish LionsDate: Saturday, 28 June Venue: Optus Stadium, Perth Time: 11:00 BSTCoverage: Live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and mobile app.
The British and Irish Lions will play their first tour match in Australia on Saturday against Super Rugby Pacific side Western Force.It will be the second match the Lions have played on their 2025 tour following the 28-24 defeat by Argentina in Dublin last Friday.Saturday's game in Perth will be the first of five games before the three-match Test series against the Wallabies starts in Brisbane on 19 July.From Western Force's form, to team news and how to follow the game on BBC Sport - here's all you need to know.
Where is the match being played?
Saturday's match is taking place at the 60,000-capacity Optus Stadium in Perth and will kick off at 11:00 BST (18:00 local time).The Lions ran out 69-17 winners when the teams met during the 2013 tour with current assistant coach Johnny Sexton scoring an early try and Leigh Halfpenny converting all nine of his team's tries.
How can I follow the game on BBC Sport?
You can follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app, with build-up starting from 10:00 BST. There will also be post-match reaction and analysis online and via Radio 5 Live and the Rugby Union Weekly podcast, which is now producing daily episodes.Make sure to follow BBC Sport's dedicated British and Irish Lions page for updates from our reporters in Australia.The game is being shown live on Sky Sports, S4C and TG4.
Western Force's recent form
Western Force are the weakest of the four Australian Super Rugby Pacific sides that the Lions will face on tour.Simon Cron's side won four out of their 14 games in Super Rugby Pacific this year to finish as the lowest-ranked Australian team in ninth place.Force are on a five-game losing run, with their last win coming against New Zealand's Highlanders in April.In October, Emerging Ireland, a team containing some of the best developing talent in Ireland, defeated Saturday's hosts 29-24 in Bloemfontein.
British & Irish Lions team news
There are nine Leinster players in the matchday 23 - a Lions record for the amount of players from one club.Five of those in the starting XV - Dan Sheehan, Garry Ringrose, James Lowe, Joe McCarthy and Josh van der Flier - as well as replacement prop Andrew Porter are making their Lions debuts.England's Ollie Chessum and Will Stuart, and Scotland centre Huw Jones, are also set for debuts off the bench.With tour captain Maro Itoje rested, hooker Sheehan leads the side in Perth.Northampton's Henry Pollock makes his first start at number eight having come off the bench last Friday.Tomos Williams is rewarded for a fine cameo against the Pumas with a start at scrum-half and Finn Russell is the fly-half.Elliot Daly gets the nod over Marcus Smith at full-back, with Hugo Keenan not yet fully fit and Blair Kinghorn playing for Toulouse in the Top 14 final.Sione Tuipulotu and Tadhg Beirne are the only survivors from the side that faced the Pumas, but have been switched to inside centre and blind-side flanker respectively.
Who is in Western Force's team?
Ben Donaldson was released from Australia's training squad on Thursday to replace injured veteran Kurtley Beale.Donaldson, who is in Australia's Test squad as a fly-half, starts at full-back with Alex Harford at 10 alongside former Exeter scrum-half Nic White.White, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson and Darcy Swain had already been released by Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt.But fellow internationals Carlo Tizzano, Jeremy Williams and Harry Potter - who was born in London and won the Premiership with Leicester in 2022 - were not allowed to leave.Former Leicester hooker Nic Dolly, who was capped by England in 2021, is on the bench.
Line-ups
Western Force: Donaldson, Grealy, Proctor, Stewart, Pietsch, Harford, White (capt); T Robertson, Paenga-Amosa, Hoskins, Carter, Swain, Harris, Champion de-Crespigny, EkuasiReplacements: Dolly, Pearce, Tauakipulu, Faifua, Prinsep, H Robertson, Burey, KuenzieBritish and Irish Lions: Daly, Hansen, Ringrose, Tuipulotu, Lowe, Russell, Williams; Schoeman, Sheehan (capt), Furlong, Cummings, McCarthy, Beirne, Van der Flier, PollockReplacements: Kelleher, Porter, Stuart, Chessum, Conan, Mitchell, Jones, M Smith
Who are the match officials?
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)Assistant Referee 1: Paul Williams (New Zealand)Assistant Referee 2: James Doleman (New Zealand)TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)Foul Play Review Officer (FPRO): Glenn Newman (New Zealand)
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