5 Reasons Why Lions Should Wallop Wallabies – and Why They Maybe Not

Brisbane – The 12-year wait is a little more complete.

The Wallabies finally fight again with the British and Irish Lions, with two sides opening three Test series on Saturday night.

According to the bookmakers, Australia is unlikely to win the first Test at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. In fact, you can get an odds of $4.40 with Wallabies, but tourists are as short as $1.23

There are five very good reasons why the Lions should control the Wallabies in Brisbane, and why Australian fans shouldn’t let go of all hope.

The Lions have won the past two Tests in Brisbane to start the series

It’s debate how much value should be placed on the two games in 12 years, but in the context of how this famous series will set it, it certainly deserves debate. In 2001, the Lions blew the Wallabies out of the water, and the great Irish Brian O’Drisco won memorable solo attempts in front of a crowd of Gabbas who might have been in Dublin or London. The Lions comfortably won that test, winning 35-14, and ultimately building a platform for the series they ultimately lose.

But it was a much tougher contest in 2013, with Israel Forau’s first half heroics holding the Wallabies on their front paws, while the Lions Wingers George North and Alex Cuthbert each scored their own stunning scores. Australia had a last chance to steal the results late, but Kurtley Beale endured one of the more devastating slips in the history of national sports, with his subsequent attempts at penalties low and widespread, with Wallabee fans chasing Caxton Street to lament their grief and lament.

The Wallabies don’t have Rob Valletini

If there was one player the Wallabies simply couldn’t afford to lose, it was their two-time governing John Eels medalist Rob Barrecini. The Brumbies backlower is one of the few truly world-class players on the team, offering a large portion of Australia in the middle of the paddock. He is also a jarring defender and can change the momentum of a match with a single tackle. Luckily, Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt said Thursday that Balletini and Rock Will Skeleton are suitable for their second Test in Melbourne next Saturday.

On Friday, he asked if he needed to raise his workload as a ball carrier as a result of Vallecini’s absence, Wallaby skipper Harry Wilson said: “We all have to do that, tough carry with Bobby, he’s a week, a week, you don’t take it for granted. Like him, it’s clearly not ideal, but if everyone just picks up that little 10% (it can cover Vallecini).

If you’re looking for a reference point for Valletini’s influence, Australia’s amazing victory over Britain is a good starting point. His 38 runmeter is the highest in the paddock, and he posted the second carry in 13. Harry Wilson (16).

Lions No. 10 has 87 test caps. Wallabys’ only 3

Lions coach Andy Farrell admitted on Thursday that he had considered Scotland’s fly half Finn Russell as No. 10 for months, and while considering other options, Russell was never really lost. That’s also good reason, as the bus playmaker has 87 appearances in his country and one contestant from the South African Lions bench in 2021. He also fought back against being dumped from the National Squad by coach Gregor Townsend, and most recently assisted in his guide to the British Premiership Crown. He has been world class 10 for many years and not bad for a player once described as a heretic for an international arena.

Meanwhile, the Wallabies turned their eyes to 22-year-old Tom Lina, a player who has never started a Test match and has three Test caps in full stops to his name. Noah Reracio was always going to be the Schmidt man in Brisbane until a neck injury and subsequent surgery ruled him indefinitely. That means Australia is doing something very unfamiliar with it – and considering his last game was a loss in the Reds’ quarter-finals six weeks ago, there are playmakers in the biggest rugby arena outside of the Knockout World Cup match and the Live Blades Low Cup Test. Another Australian concern? Linag has his own problems with head knocks, lasting only 35 minutes of that quarterfinal against the Crusades last month. Ben Donaldson needs to be ready to go from the start.

For the record, total test caps read Australia 641, Lions 1172. It’s a big margin, but it made something even more different by the fact that the Wallabies totals 225 at James Slippers (144) and Alan Arratoa (81).

Suncorp Stadium was once a Wallaby fortress. There’s no more

There was a time when Australia wanted to play all the Tests in Brisbane. Sydney became a very unfortunate hunting ground, especially during the Bredithroe Cup time, but ventures to Perth and Melbourne also only occasionally lay fruit. However, Suncorp Stadium may also be their hometown. Bledisloe won in 2011, 2017 and 2020. They beat Springbox six of the seven tests at the venue between 2009 and 2021. France had two victories in 2021.

However, they have not won the venue since their second Test against Les Bruce, losing to Britain in 2022 and South Africa last year.

The Lion is fighting hardening, and the Wallabies aren’t

The Lions have chopped up and changed the lineup in six games so far, but players each spent plenty of time preparing for this test on Saturday night. Importantly, Jamison Gibson Park and Finn Russell were on two outings together, but the 10-12-13 Scotland axis of Russell, Twiprotou and Who Jones have gained enormous experience as a cohesive trio.

The same cannot be said about Australia. Australia will incorporate half pairing into a test that they have never played before, but the team itself had one warm-up game.

Then there’s the fact that multiple wallabies are grossly dodging as individuals. Things like Jake Gordon, Matt Fessler and Max Jorgensen missed out on a big chunk of Super Rugby season, but Linag was in and out of the Reds for a head knock.

There’s Joe Schmidt in Australia with little or no expectations

It completely reflects why it became an ugly Australian reading and the price with Booky was dragged to $4.40 over the week. They were clear outsiders on Saturday night, and as the Wallabies told ESPN this week, they were “pretty mediocre” for a while.

Is there anything to support Wallabies in victory? It may be clenched into a straw and mitigated by the loss of key personnel, but there is no doubt that Australia turned the corner under Schmidt last year. Some improvements to the game’s fundamentals could not be denied. They are also playing from positions that the majority of people hope to lose this test as well as the series.

The underdog tag doesn’t often cling to you, but there are probably few people who have the freedom to play the game and give you hope to win. A few years ago, the same “no chance” sentiment was also said about skipper Harry Wilson’s test career.

“I’ve always wanted to be a Wallabies. For me, it’s my biggest honor to have you play for your country and pull this gold jersey,” Wilson said after the captain’s run on Friday.

“You have ups and downs. No one has a career where you don’t have some downs and I definitely had quite a few. But I’ve always wanted to put myself in these situations.

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