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THE AVIVA STADIUM will be jam-packed on 20 June when the British & Irish Lions take on Argentina before the squad head off on their Australian tour.
It will mark the first time the Lions play a fixture in Ireland, and the first time they play under head coach Andy Farrell.
But how significant is the upcoming match, and how might the Lions fare when on tour? Murray Kinsella, rugby journalist with The 42 is the man to ask – he’s even ag taisteal chun na hAstráile, travelling to Australia to cover the Lions tour.
So whether you’re a fervent Lions fan or a fairweather rugbaí watcher, here’s his take on what to know about Lions v Argentina.
The game will be broadcast live exclusively on TG4, with Rugbaí Beo coverage starting from 7.20pm on 20 June, and Gemma Ní Chionnaith, Cúan Ó Flatharta and guests in studio.
How significant is the match? Cé chomh suntasach is atá an cluiche?
“In the past, the Lions would often just go on tour, get to the destination, and play matches over there,” says Kinsella. “But here, they also have a home game as part of their warm up just before leaving. So it’s great, because Lions fans get to actually go to a game without travelling all the way to Australia or New Zealand or South Africa.”
“It won’t be the biggest, most dramatic, landmark occasion – it’s a warm-up game. But it’s still pretty cool for them to do it.”
How much of an Irish angle is there? Cad é an uillinn Éireannach?
The last time the Lions played Argentina was a 2005 test match in Cardiff before that year’s Lions tour.
“The Irish angle is massive this time, because Andy Farrell, the Ireland head coach, is the Lions’ head coach,” says Kinsella. “He has four of his Ireland assistant coaches with him. And obviously there are lots of Irish players in the squad as well. It’s a very green Lions story this time – and setting off in Dublin only adds to that.”
Farrell has been involved in Lions tours before, as an assistant coach. “2013 was the first time he worked with a lot of Irish guys, and that’s how he built relationships with them at first,” says Kinsella. “He was still with England at the time, but they all loved him.”
“It hasn’t been the best season for Ireland this season, but they’ve been the highest performing of the four Lions nations for the last four years, winning a Grand Slam in 2023 and winning the Six Nations in 2024,” says Kinsella. “They won a series against the All Blacks in 2022 down in New Zealand as well. So that added to his credentials.”
Farrell seems particularly good at uniting a group. “That’s really important, because it’s still a pretty absurd concept, bringing four teams together in a very short space of time, some of whom have been battering each other on the pitch very recently, who might have rivalries amongst themselves – and you’ve got to unite them all very quickly,” says Kinsella.
There are 16 Irish players in Farrell’s squad, while his assistant coaches include Simon Easterby, John Fogarty, Johnny Sexton and Andrew Goodman, as well as backroom staff from Ireland.
“So he’s leaning on things he knows, which, again, is very characteristic for him,” says Kinsella. “When you’ve earned his loyalty, he returns it.”
How could the Lions perform in Australia? Cén chaoi a bhféadfadh an fhoireann feidhmiú san Astráil?
When the Lions reach Australia, Farrell will find himself going up against his old boss Joe Schmidt, who’s in charge of the Wallabies (Australia). Not only did Schmidt transform Irish rugby, but Farrell was his assistant until Schmidt left in 2019 after the Rugby World Cup.
“Schmidt was with the All Blacks at the last World Cup in 2023 when they beat Ireland, but he’s been in charge of Australia since last year and has massively improved them in a short space of time. So that matchup, in terms of coaching, makes it even more interesting,” says Kinsella.
Are there positive expectations for the tour? “Before Joe Schmidt took over the Wallabies, there was actually a lot of talk about ‘why are they even bothering playing this? The Wallabies won’t have a chance’, because they were very poor,” says Kinsella.
“They were on a real low ebb. But that’s changed because the Wallabies have improved. They’ve had some big wins. They beat England last November in London. They beat Scotland in Edinburgh last November. They ran Ireland quite close in Dublin in November as well. They beat Wales a few times last year. So they’ve done well against the nations that make up the Lions.
“I think the expectations have changed but the Lions I think will still be most people’s favourites. Which is a bit strange, because traditionally it’s quite hard for the Lions to win the series. The last series they won was 2013 when they last went to Australia.”
“I think the expectation will be that the Lions will win, but it’s certainly not the foregone conclusion that people maybe thought last year.”
What matches should we watch out for? Cad iad na cluichí ar cheart dúinn a bheith ag faire amach dóibh?
One of the highlights of the 10-match tour will be the First Nations and Pasifika team v The Lions at Suncorp Stadium in Melbourne on 22 July.
“Lots of high-profile international players with Samoan and Tongan heritage want to be involved in that,” said Kinsella. ”It’s great for Australian Rugby. That’ll be a big, proud day for them, because they are good at celebrating their different strands that make up Australian Rugby and Australia nationally – way better than in the past.”
What other matches should people watch out for? “On 12 July, they play an Invitational Australia – New Zealand team. Again, that has attracted massive interest from players – lots of New Zealand rugby stars, wanting to be involved in that high-profile game.
“It’s the weekend before the first test against the Wallabies, so it’ll be a massive game for the Lions as well.”
On 2 July, the Lions face off against the Queensland Reds in Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium – and there’s yet another Irish link here. “Queensland Reds’ head coach is Les Kiss, who was Ireland’s defence coach for years, and then he was director of rugby at Ulster. He’s going to take over from Schmidt next year as the Wallabies’ head coach.”
Yet another Irish link is that on 5 July the Lions will play the Waratahs, and one of their coaches is Mike Catt, who was coaching with Farrell in Ireland until last year.
What about the players to watch out for? Cé na himreoirí ar cheart dúinn aird a thabhairt orthu?
One thing to note, says Kinsella, is that Leinster play in the United Rugby Championship final tomorrow (Saturday 14 June).
“That could mean that [Leinster Lions members] probably won’t, in most cases, play for the Lions next Friday,” says Kinsella. While this hasn’t been announced formally, there would also be some doubt about the Lions members who play in the Premiership final in England that day.
There are 16 Irish Lions, 12 of whom are from Leinster. “It’s a massive contingent of players in one club, it’s huge and unprecedented,” says Kinsella. The non-Leinster Irish Lions are Mack Hansen, Bundee Aki, and Finlay Bealham from Connacht and Tadhg Beirne from Munster.
Beirne was on the 2021 Lions tour, but didn’t quite have an integral role. “Since then, he’s been one of the best players in the world,” points out Kinsella.
Meanwhile, for Australian Mack Hansen, the Lions tour is a return home. “He’s been a roaring success in Ireland, but he’s had a difficult season this year,” says Kinsella. “He’s had a lot of injuries, and hasn’t probably hit his best form because of that. But Andy Farrell really likes him. He’s a very creative player, and he’s a wacky personality off the pitch. When you’re making these squads to go on tour for seven weeks, sometimes having those kind of people in your squad is really important because there’s a bit of craic.”
It’s a big game for Hansen, not least because his position in the squad was questioned after Scottish winger Darcy Graham missed out on a Lions place. “I think it’s a big game for him, just to silence those questions and show everyone why Andy Farrell picked him,” says Kinsella.
Final predictions? Tuar deiridh?
“It wouldn’t surprise me if Argentina beat the Lions in this first game, because they won’t have a lot of time together,” says Kinsella. “The week before, the Lions will be in Portugal at training camp. And then they come back to Dublin, and they spend the week there. And honestly, I don’t think the result there is massively important. They just want to get up and running with a cohesive performance.”
As for the overall Australian tour, Kinsella says he’s still leaning towards the Lions.
“Because they have lots of individual quality. But Joe Schmidt is the most shrewd coach around, and he’s made massive improvements. The challenge for him is that this year, Australia haven’t played a game because of the nature of their season and will only get one warm-up against Fiji.
“But last year, they played a lot of rugby together, so he had plenty of time to prep. There’d be no shortage of motivation for him, going up against lots of familiar faces.”
As for Argentina? “It’s class for them to be able to play the Lions, because they want the Lions to eventually come and tour in Argentina as well. Everyone wants to play the Lions,” says Kinsella. “They had an impressive year last year. And their head coach is Felipe Contepomi, who’s a Leinster legend, and was an assistant coach there until 2022.”
Murray Kinsella will be reporting from the Lions tour in Australia for The 42.
Watch the Lions tour live on Rugbaí Beo on TG4 on 20 June from 7.20pm.
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