Wallabies 'still worthy' of a B&I Lions visit
The British and Irish Lions have waved off any talk of the Wallabies being easybeats, with Welsh great Ieuan Evans labelling Joe Schmidt’s side a supreme challenge and worth the long trip.
When they last toured Australia in 2013, the B&I Lions escaped with a somewhat lucky 2-1 series victory, with Kurtley Beale’s slip while attempting the match-winning penalty in game one proving costly.
The Wallabies’ stocks have dipped dramatically since, with their nadir coming at the 2023 World Cup when they bombed out in the group stage under then-coach Eddie Jones.
In the wake of that disastrous result, it was questioned whether the Wallabies were still worthy of the prestige of hosting a British and Irish Lions tour.
New Zealand born Schmidt has at least restored much-needed pride and resilience to the Wallabies over the past 17 months, but the team is still ranked a lowly eighth in the world.
The B&I Lions comprise the best players from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.
Ireland are ranked third in the world, with England (sixth) and Scotland (seventh) also sitting above Australia.
Evans is a former Wales captain who took part in three B&I Lions tours.
He is now the Chairman and touring manager of the B&I Lions, and the 61-year-old still holds the Wallabies in the highest regard.
“As a supreme challenge for us,” Evans replied when asked how he views the Wallabies now.
“We’ve travelled 8,000 miles to come and take on the Wallabies in their own backyard.
“They have an elite coach and a squad that are really bubbling at the prospect of taking on the B&I Lions for the first time for 12 years.
“There’s a challenge there that I’m sure they’re going to take on full blooded, and we’re anticipating that.”
As it stands, only South Africa, Australia and New Zealand host B&I Lions series, but countries such as Argentina and France are keen to get in on the action.
Evans has no doubt the Wallabies deserve to hold their place for future B&I Lions tours.
A special way to kick off our week in Perth! 🇦🇺#Lions2025 pic.twitter.com/FFoD5GmulF
— British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) June 23, 2025
“We’re talking about one of the proudest and elite sporting nations in the world,” he said.
“I fully expect them to be firing on all cylinders by the time we get to the Test series.”
The B&I Lions begin their tour schedule on Saturday when they take on the Western Force before an expected crowd of more than 40,000 fans in Perth.
They received a reality check on the weekend when beaten 28-24 by Argentina in Dublin.
Assistant coach Simon Easterby, a former Test star for Ireland, said such early teething problems were to be expected.
“It just takes a little bit of time to build cohesion, different combinations, different parts of the game,” Easterby said.
“So I think you’re inevitably going to have a little bit of bedding-in time.
“We know that we’re going to have to fix it very quickly and move on. We just need to make sure we’re on the same page as quickly as we can be.”
Irish pair Jamison Gibson-Park (glute) and Hugo Keenan (calf) are in doubt to take on the Force.
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