Rugby Australia chief certain British and Lions will return in 2037

SYDNEY – Rugby Australia (RA) chief executive Phil Waugh was disappointed the Wallabies lost the Test series against the British and Irish Lions, but believes the tour was a huge success and talk that the tourists might not return in 12 years’ time was well wide of the mark.

Some media pundits had suggested after the Lions comfortably won the first Test in Brisbane that Australian rugby was so weak they no longer deserved their place on the touring rotation alongside New Zealand and South Africa.

Waugh thought the competitiveness of the Wallabies in the second Test in Melbourne, where they came within seconds of victory, and the third in Sydney, where they won 22-12, had firmly quashed any speculation about the Lions not returning.

“Australia is a really important home for the Lions tour every 12 years,” he told reporters at the conclusion of the series.

“On the field, I think the accumulative points, they got one point better than us and one try better than us, and it was a really fierce Test battle.

“So I think any of that speculation, it was shut down by a number of people, including their CEO (Ben Calveley), who spoke at various events committing to return to Australia.”

Waugh thought the second Test, which attracted a crowd of 90,307 to the Melbourne Cricket Ground, was one of the best internationals he had seen in a while and he had been impressed with the Wallabies throughout the series.

“I think it’s been an overwhelmingly successful tour, albeit it would have been nice to win the... trophy, but that wasn’t to happen,” he added. “I think that the progress that’s continued through the group, and I think the cultural growth of the group, has been really, really pleasing.”

Around 450,000 fans attended the nine matches, and Waugh said the tour had exceeded expectations on financial returns for both the hosts and the Lions.

Exactly what the returns were was still being calculated, he said, but Australia’s proceeds would go to reducing the A$80 million (S$66.6 million) credit facility the RA took out in 2023, which cost more than A$9 million to service in 2024.

“It certainly exceeded expectations,” Waugh said. “I’ve always said that it’s a really good opportunity for us to reset the balance sheet.

“We’ve got the debt facility, and ideally we pay that down as quickly as possible, given the cost to carry it... then we’ll lean into the next broadcast cycle to get to a financially sustainable model.”

The Wallabies got great returns in the series from Will Skelton, the wrecking ball of a lock who was recalled from his French club La Rochelle to take on the Lions.

Tight-head prop Taniela Tupou, who played a key role in the third Test victory, will also be moving to a French club in 2025, which would once have made him ineligible to play for the Wallabies.

That blanket ban was eased ahead of the 2015 World Cup under the “Giteau Law”, which allowed the Wallabies coach to select three overseas-based players under certain criteria.

RA’s high performance director Peter Horne confirmed that all restrictions on Test selection had been scrapped when Joe Schmidt took over as Wallabies coach in 2024.

“Joe’s got no impediment to select whoever he wants,” he said. “That’s always been the case. The Giteau Law’s kind of redundant.

“But we’ve also made a choice that we select domestically if the players are of equal calibre, it’s important that we invest in our premier competition in Australia.”

However, the Wallabies will not be able to count on Dave Porecki, who has retired from professional rugby only weeks after reviving his Test career.

The New South Wales Waratah hooker, 32, battled injuries in recent seasons, but made his first Australia appearance under Schmidt against Fiji in July after nearly two years out of the Wallabies.

After suffering a concussion against Fiji and missing the first Lions Test in Brisbane, Porecki was recalled for the second clash in Melbourne before being sidelined for the final Test in Sydney due to a cut heel at training.

Capped 21 times for the Wallabies, Porecki said it was the right time to start a new chapter in his life. REUTERS