Australia issues robust Lions response as demand to release star players for tour games rejected

Australia head coach Joe Schmidt has hit back at the British and Irish Lions over their warning he is contractually obliged to release his stars to their Super Rugby franchises throughout the tour.

Lions chief executive Ben Calveley on Monday called for all Wallabies to be allowed to represent the Western Force, Reds, Waratahs and Brumbies in the build-up to the Test series, stating their involvement is part of the tour agreement.

Head coach Andy Farrell wants his squad to be battle-hardened by the time international hostilities commence on July 19, but Schmidt has said he will ring-fence a core of 25 players for the warm-up game against Fiji on July 6 to ensure they avoid injury.

Only Saturday’s opponents the Western Force are certain to have access to their full contingent of Wallabies, with Schmidt insisting it is unrealistic to expect front-line operators such as Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Len Ikitau to double up for their franchise and country.

Australia head coach Joe Schmidt who has hit back at the British and Irish Lions over their warning he is contractually obliged to release his stars to their Super Rugby franchises throughout the tour. | PA

“There’s some serious plate-spinning at the moment, trying to get ready,” Schmidt told the Sydney Morning Herald. “The ambition is there will be some going back to the Reds and some going back to the Waratahs.

“But in reality, the Lions have got their squad. Are they going to play their best team every week? That’s unlikely. So are we going to play all the same players every week?

“We play Fiji on a Sunday and the Waratahs play on a Saturday night. So it’s not like you can play Saturday and Sunday night against a team like the Lions. It would be counterproductive.

“I’m not sure whether Andy was part of that discussion or whether it was just coming from the CEO, but I’ve read the tours agreement and it’s having the best intention to have the highest-quality players available and playing.

“It’s not as specific as saying every Wallaby from a state or a club has to be available to play every game that the Lions come through on.”

Schmidt’s robust response to Calveley comes after he took a swipe at the Lions for the number of overseas-born players in their squad.

The Kiwi described Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu as a “southern-hemisphere centre partnership” when they were selected to face Argentina on Friday night.

Bundee Aki (R) and fellow centre Sione Tuipulotu of the British & Irish Lions look during defeat to Argentina at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Aki and Tuipulotu were born in New Zealand and Australia respectively, while James Lowe, Jamison Gibson-Park, Duhan van der Merwe, Pierre Schoeman, Finlay Bealham and Mack Hansen were also born outside Britain and Ireland.

Meanwhile, Australia great Kurtley Beale has revealed he has not watched back his fateful missed penalty during the Lions’ last tour Down Under in 2013.

Beale slipped during the run-up to a kick that, if successful, would have given the Wallabies a 1-0 lead in a series they went on to lose 2-1.

“It was a real disappointment in that game one, an embarrassing moment, but there are plenty of learnings. From that day onwards I’ve worn studs!” said Beale, who will start for the Western Force in Perth on Saturday.

“It was a crucial moment in the series, wasn’t it? I was just very thankful to have strong team-mates around me to pick me back up and get my focus into the next game.”