Joe Schmidt has gambled on the 22-year-old Reds outhalf Tom Lynagh to fill the void left by Noal Lolesion’s absence by handing him his full international debut in Saturday’s First Test against the British and Irish Lions in Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium.
The Wallabies head coach has also rolled the dice by naming Nick Champion de Crespigny for his Test debut in the absence of influential, ball-carrying backrower Rob Valetini, the back-to-back winner of the John Eales Medal, awarded to Australia’s player of the year, who has been sidelined with a calf injury.
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Lynagh, whose father Michael was the Wallabies’ outhalf when the Lions came from one down to win the series 2-1 in 1989, made his Test debut in Schmidt’s first match as head coach against Wales last year.
Slow Lions build-up finally culminates in Test week
But despite winning only two subsequent caps off the bench in the Rugby Championship losses at home to South Africa and away to Argentina, he has been chosen ahead of Ben Donaldson, who closed out the win over Fiji two weeks ago after Lolesio went off with a neck injury which subsequently required surgery.
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Lolesio had been Schmidt’s go-to man at outhalf, having started 12 of the 14 Tests under the watch of the former Leinster and Ireland coach.
The Wallabies head coach has gambled on the inexperienced Lynagh after a strong season with the Reds, during which he demonstrated his greater running threat compared to Donaldson by scoring four tries among his haul of 14 points in 13 games for the Reds.
But he has not played in six weeks since being forced off with concussion against the Crusaders in Christchurch on June 6th
The 29-year-old Champion de Crespigny completes an unusual rise to Test rugby, having spent three seasons with Castres in the Top 14 before joining the Western Force ahead of this year’s Super Rugby Pacific.
Two other changes to the starting XV from that game see the return of fit-again scrumhalf Jake Gordon as well as hooker Matt Faessler who was part of the Reds side beaten by the Lions two-and-a-half weeks ago.
The Wallabies’ most capped player of all time, loosehead James Slipper, will emulate fellow centurion George Smith as the only Wallabies to feature for Australia in back-to-back Lions series in the professional era.
Unexpectedly, there is also no place in the match-day ‘23’ for Will Skelton who faced the media last Monday but, like Valetini, has also been in a race against time due to a calf injury, while flanker Langi Gleeson has a dead leg and tighthead Taniela Tupou is out of form and favour.
Schmidt is confident that Skelton, Valetini and Gleeson will all be available for the Second Test on Saturday week.
Speaking about his outhalf Schmidt said: “I’m really excited for Tom. He’s a great kid. He’s got a quiet confidence about him. You wouldn’t think that he’s necessarily designed to run a game and dictate what’s happening, but he does have a quiet confidence that gives us a quiet confidence as well.
“And he’s fitted in really well this week. He has given us the confidence, and the players the confidence, that he’s going to run the game really well for us. His kicking game is strong. He’s got good acceleration and he’s incredibly brave to a fault.”
Schmidt also said that Lynagh had been due to start in a couple of Tests last year until “little niggles” ruled him out and that playing in his home stadium had been a factor in his selection.
“It’s probably not ideal to be starting your first Test match for the Wallabies against the British and Irish Lions, but you’ve got to start somewhere and if not now, when? So now is good.”
Asked if Lynagh inherited some of his father’s temperament and ability, Schmidt said he had first spoken to the latter about his son almost a decade ago.
“I always felt that Michael had a real quiet control of games and a calmness about the way that he ran the game. And I do think there’s a bit of that in Tom. It’s always the same when you haven’t seen someone at the level and they haven’t been put under the pressure that’s going to come, then you’re not quite sure how things are going to work out. But I have real confidence in Tom and I’m sure Michael does as well.”
Of his injured trip of forwards, Schmidt said: “If it was the last game of the series, I think they would have been in the mix.”
He admitted Valetini is a loss. “You put a training team together and all the boys are looking at my and Bobby’s team just to see if they’ve got a better chance of starting, because Bobby has been a very regular starter for us and a big player for us. Those are the things that do happen.”
But although Champion de Crespigny has “big shoes to fill” Schmidt said the Force flanker is “a good lineout option” and “a bit more of a roving scavenger than Bobby V”.
Regarding the enforced absentees, Schmidt maintained: “I’d be pretty pragmatic about that and I’d hope that the team are as well. We try not to base our whole game around any individual, that we share the load. We share the excitement of the opportunity and I think those things are still shared across the group, and they’re excited about the opportunity.
“I’d like to think that we can still go out, probably sharing Tom Lynagh’s quiet confidence that we can put a game together that at least can keep the British and Irish Lions pretty honest on the day.”
Wallabies team to play British & Irish Lions at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Saturday July 19th at 7.45pm AEST
15. Tom Wright (38 Tests) – #939; Clovelly Eagles
14. Max Jorgensen (8 Tests) – #984; Balmain Wolves
13. Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii (5 Tests) – #988; The Kings School
12. Len Ikitau (40 Tests) – #944; Tuggeranong Vikings
11. Harry Potter (3 Tests) - #989; Moorabbin Rams
10. Tom Lynagh (3 Tests) - #977; University of Queensland
9. Jake Gordon (29 Tests) - #925; Canterbury Juniors
1. James Slipper (144 Tests) – #843; Bond Pirates
2. Matt Faessler (14 Tests) - #969; USQ Saints
3. Allan Alaalatoa (81 Tests) – #896; West Harbour Juniors
4. Nick Frost (26 Tests) – #953; Hornsby Lions
5. Jeremy Williams (11 Tests) – #973; Wahroonga Tigers
6. Nick Champion de Crespigny* - Canberra Grammar School
7. Fraser McReight (26 Tests) – #937; Albany Creek Brumbies
8. Harry Wilson (c) (23 Tests) – #933; Gunnedah Red Devils
Substitutes
16. Billy Pollard (7 Tests) – #958; Lindfield Junior Rugby Club
17. Angus Bell (37 Tests) – #940; Hunters Hill Rugby Club
18. Tom Robertson (31 Tests) – #898; Dubbo Junior Rugby Club
19. Tom Hooper (11 Tests) – #964; Bathurst Bulldogs
20. Carlo Tizzano (6 Tests) – #982; University of Western Australia
21. Tate McDermott (42 Tests) – #936; Flinders Rugby Club
22. Ben Donaldson (17 Tests) – #962; Clovelly Eagles
23. Andrew Kellaway (39 Tests) - #943; Hunters Hill Rugby Club
*denotes Test debut
