Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt won’t release his best 25 players to Australia’s Super Rugby teams for their tour matches against the British & Irish Lions.
The Lions face the Force (28 June), Reds (2 July), Waratahs (5 July) and Brumbies (9 July) before the first Test in Brisbane on 19 July.
However, the tourists are likely to only test themselves against fringe Wallabies when playing provincial opposition.
“The policy is that we’d probably be very keen to safeguard out what we perceive to be 23 or 24, 25, and then the rest of the squad for them to get the games and to get to play against the Lions,” Schmidt told reporters at Rugby Australia.
“We don’t want to deprive someone of the opportunity of playing against the Lions if they’re not going to get the Test jersey at the time.
“But we know that the Lions, you never get through unscathed, so we know that we’re going to need people.
“It’s like [Lions coach] Faz [Andy Farrell] having named that squad of 38, but naming 10 standby players because he knows he’s going to have to dip into that pool, and some of those players could come through and really stand out for the Lions in the end.”
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Schmidt will name a squad of around 38 players ahead of the Wallabies’ Test against Fiji on 6 July in Newcastle.
His squad for the Lions Test series is expected to be announced in the days leading up to the match between an Invitational Australian and New Zealand XV and the Lions in Adelaide on 12 July.
Lions 2025 schedule:
Saturday 28 June: vs Western Force, Optus Stadium, Perth
Wednesday 2 July: vs Queensland Reds, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Saturday 5 July: vs New South Wales Waratahs, Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Wednesday 9 July: vs ACT Brumbies, GIO Stadium, Canberra
Saturday 12 July: vs Invitational Australian and New Zealand XV, Adelaide Oval
Saturday 19 July: vs Wallabies, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Tuesday 22 July: vs Melbourne Rebels, Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
Saturday 26 July: vs Wallabies, Melbourne Cricket Ground
Saturday 2 August: vs Wallabies, Stadium Australia, Sydney
Photo: Clive Rose/Getty Images
