Owen Farrell will captain the British and Irish Lions in their final tour match in Australia against First Nations Pacifica XV at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne on Tuesday night.
Farrell is honored by his father and Lions coach Andy Farrell, and is lined up at the outer inner centre of Starfin Smith in England.
The match will also be a major part of Lions Broad’s final hitout in Australia, representing an opportunity to impress Test candidates Jack Morgan and Blair Kinghorn ahead of their second clash with the Wallabies at MCG this weekend.
But that match 23, injuries aside, it looks like a tough question considering how well the Lions played for Brisbane after running a 27-19 winner at Suncorp Stadium.
They have the opportunity to put together the series in front of a crowd of over 90,000 people, but first they will all turn their eyes to a clash with First Nation Pacifica XV featuring several wallaby players who will be impressed with Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Taniela Tupou and Filipo Daugunu.
Elsewhere, the Lions have named both Josh van der Freier and Henry Pollock by their mobile backrows, while James Ryan and Scott Cummins are paired at Rock. In the front row, Pierre Schumann, Jamie George and Finlay Bealham are present as extremely experienced engine rooms.
Scottish Scrum Half Ben White is inside Smith on the backline, but Ireland’s Jamie Osborne has partnered with Farrell in the middle after joining the team last weekend.
Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Melwe won three backs alongside Kinghorn.
“This fixture gives players another opportunity to raise their hands for the selection for the last two tests.
“The heart of the coach is open about choice. They want so many players to perform and push places and continue doing that for the remaining two tests.
“This group knows the level of performance they need for a First Nations Pacifica team, full of talent and power.”
The match was controversial after the Lions refused to select Pete Sam on the team last week, resulting in widespread public outrage, with team coach Toutai Kefu saying he was “absolutely encouraged” by the decision.
Saturday night Andy Farrell defended the “rules and regulations” used to block Sam’s inclusion. Tourists exercised their right to have a say indigenous Pacifica teams that they can choose under their pre-tour agreement.
The First Nations Pacifica side was organized following the end of Melbourne’s rebels.
Replacements Ben Earl, Alex Mitchell and Marcus Smith are the only Lions players to back up from Saturday night’s Wallabies victory.
The lions teams in the UK and Ireland
Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham, Jamie Osborne, Owen Farrell, Duhan van der Melwe, Finn Smith and Ben White. Henry Pollock, Josh van der Freier, Jack Morgan, James Ryan, Scott Cummings, Finlay Bealham, Jamie George and Pierre Schumann. Alternatives: Ewan Ashman, Rory Sutherland, Tom Clarkson, Gregor Brown, Ben Earl, Alex Mitchell, Marcus Smith, Garry Ringrose.
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“Rules and Regulations”: Lions block Sam’s Pacifica opportunities