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Aki And Tuipulotu In Tandem As Lions Limber Up For Pumas Challenge

Aki And Tuipulotu In Tandem As Lions Limber Up For Pumas Challenge

Bundee Aki toured South Africa with the British & Irish Lions in 2021, partnering his Ireland team-mate Robbie Henshaw for the final Test ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Fans’ eyes were immediately drawn to the centre partnership picked for the British & Irish Lions’ Dublin date with Argentina, and the pairing of Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu certainly has the potential to catch fire.

It was only last month that Aki and Tuipulotu were direct rivals in midfield when Connacht hosted Glasgow Warriors, and they tussled twice at international level in 2023 when Ireland won the Grand Slam and then knocked Scotland out of the Rugby World Cup.

Normally found in the number 12 jersey, the Scotland captain shifts to the outside centre berth as he joins forces for the first time with fellow powerhouse Aki, who is embarking on his second Lions tour.

Andy Farrell has praised the duo for the work they have put in together ahead of Friday’s opener against the Pumas at the Aviva Stadium (kick-off 8pm). The last remaining tickets are available to buy here.

“They have been great. Getting on the same page, sharing each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and trying to get across what is a new system to everyone,” he said, speaking at the team announcement press conference.

“Probably the same as what you are hoping to see, a dominant (centre) partnership, but we know that we are coming up against a side who are pretty good in those type of positions as well.

“Bundee and Sione have been very diligent, as you would expect, and we’re excited to see that partnership along with a few others (in this squad).”

Farrell’s first matchday 23 as Lions head coach is led by 2025 tour captain Maro Itoje, who is partnered in the second row by Tadhg Beirne, and contains 14 players who are set for their first appearances in the famous red jersey.

Scotland’s Duhan van der Merwe starts on the left wing following a spell out due to ankle ligament damage, and Ireland pair Tadhg Furlong and Mack Hansen are also poised to return from injury as part of a strong replacements bench.

Furlong, whose season has been severely hampered by calf and hamstring injuries, is sure to get a big reception from the home crowd when he comes on, having only played 33 minutes of international rugby since last summer.

Giving an update on the Wexford man’s progress and how much involvement he might have in Friday’s game, Farrell said: “He is fit and ready to go, and trained well and is as keen as everyone else to get the show on the road.

“It is what it is. You have all the best plans for a game of rugby. You’ve got to be ready from minute one or you roll with the punches.

“You may want to get someone on ideally after 50 or 55 minutes, and that doesn’t come to fruition and they end up getting five minutes at the end. So it is what it is, and everyone understands that.”

Another player who missed Leinster’s BKT United Rugby Championship final win over the Vodacom Bulls last week was Jamison Gibson-Park, who was pulled from the starting line-up due to a minor glute strain.

Fellow backs Huw Jones (Achilles tendon) and Hugo Keenan (calf) have both been out on the pitch at the UCD Bowl this week, with the latter, who missed the Bulls game like Furlong and Gibson-Park, now back running ahead of the Lions’ departure for Perth on Saturday.

While England scrum half Jack van Poortvliet flew in this week as cover for the 1888 Cup clash, Farrell was upbeat about the prospect of those unavailable players giving him a near fully-fit squad to chose from when they play the Western Force in their opening fixture on Australian soil.

“Good news on most of the injuries actually,” he revealed. “They’re all a week or so away from being fit. We didn’t quite know until Jamison got another scan on Monday night. That was pretty positive as well.

“So. Jack comes over as cover for this game. Jamison should be up and running for the week after. Huw Jones has trained with us this week and he’s been back into full training, so that’s great.

“Hugo Keenan ran for the first time a couple of days ago. Everything is going pretty well as far as that is concerned.

“There is always one or two bumps and bruises that you’re trying to nurse with the nature of rugby within itself. So we’re in good shape.”

Having been appointed to the head coach role back in January of last year, there was understandably a huge sense of anticipation around the Wigan man’s squad selection for the 2025 Lions’ debut in Dublin, and how proud a moment it will be for the players involved.

Covid-19 restrictions meant the Lions played at crowdless stadiums in South Africa in 2021, so Friday marks the first time the prestigious touring team has had the opportunity to line out in front of a large attendance since 48,609 watched the 2017 final Test against New Zealand in Auckland.

Current captain Itoje, and Furlong and Elliot Daly, two of the replacements to face Argentina, are the only surviving members from the squad that drew with the All Blacks that night at Eden Park. It was also Farrell’s most recent experience of a Lions tour – he was the defence coach in both 2013 and 2017.

The recently-turned 50-year-old cannot wait to get this summer’s campaign up and running, and a winning start at a ground he knows so well would definitely set the tone for what is to come Down Under.

“Naming the squad yesterday was great. You feel like the show is on the road, the journey’s about to begin properly.

“So, exciting to name that (squad) and allow the boys to realise that they will be the first to represent this group. You can just tell with the buzz in the group and the excitement around the place, what it means to the players.

“We’ve seen it in the preparation, how diligent they have been, how quickly they’ve come together as a group, and the bond that they’ve got already within such a short space of time is great to see.

“But best foot forward and all that, and it’s all about the performance on Friday night, isn’t it? Because that is where we’re all going to get judged.

“We want to do the shirt proud and we want to represent the group properly on Friday night,” he added.