Beirne To Lead Lions From All-Irish Second Row Against Waratahs

A week on from Dan Sheehan having the captaincy reins in Perth, his Ireland team-mate, Beirne, will lead Andy Farrell’s men for their third outing on Australian soil.

Beirne features in an all-Irish second row pairing with James Ryan, who makes his first Lions start after appearing off the bench during Wednesday’s 52-12 win over the Queensland Reds.

There are 14 changes for the match against the Waratahs, with Scotland centre Huw Jones the only player retained in the starting XV. Joining Beirne and Ryan as starters are debutant Hugo Keenan, who has recovered from illness, Mack Hansen, Finlay Bealham, and Josh van der Flier.

Pierre Schoeman and Luke Cowan-Dickie complete the front row alongside Bealham, while England duo Henry Pollock and Ben Earl will link up with van der Flier, the 2022 World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year, in the loose forwards.

Northampton Saints and England half-backs Fin Smith and Alex Mitchell will lead the back-line, with Scotland centres Jones and Sione Tuipulotu providing further cohesion, and Keenan, starting at full-back, and Blair Kinghorn making their Lions bows in the back-three.

Scotland scrum half Ben White is poised for his first appearance in the red jersey, as part of a replacements bench which includes the Ireland trio of Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong, and Joe McCarthy, the player-of-the-match against the Western Force last weekend.

Lions head coach Farrell commented: “Congratulations to Tadhg who will lead the side on Saturday night – and also to Blair, Hugo, and Ben who will all make their Lions debuts.

“The games are coming thick and fast now as we face a Waratahs side who will want to make their mark.”

Twelve years ago the Lions beat the Waratahs 47-17, with Leigh Halfpenny contributing 30 of the tourists’ points. Current Lions assistant coach Jonathan Sexton and Paul O’Connell, who is coaching Ireland for their summer tour to Georgia and Portugal, played in that game.

Meanwhile, Elliot Daly has unfortunately been ruled out of the rest of the Lions tour with a fractured forearm. The versatile Saracens and England back sustained the injury against the Reds in Brisbane.

His Sarries and England colleague, Owen Farrell, has been called up as a replacement and will join the squad in Sydney on Friday evening.

Speaking about the news, Andy Farrell said: “It is heartbreaking for the group that Elliot’s tour is over. He is a Lions legend who has added so much to the group on and off the field over the past few weeks and over the course of three tours.

“Owen will now come in and add to our options, and bring his own Lions experience to the group.”

This will be Owen’s fourth involvement in a Lions tour as a player, having made 18 appearances in the red shirt between 2013 and 2021. The 33-year-old amassed 112 caps for England is his country’s record points scorer.

Lions tour manager Ieuan Evans added: “To be a three-times tourist like Elliot means you have to be a world-class player over an extended period of time.

“But not only is Elliot a world-class player, he is also a wonderful Lion who is much loved by his team-mates and our fans. So we all feel for him right now.

“Both on and off the field, Elliot can be immensely proud of his contribution on this tour of Australia. He will be sorely missed and we wish him a speedy recovery.”

BRITISH & IRISH LIONS TEAM & REPLACEMENTS (v NSW Waratahs, 2025 British & Irish Lions Tour Match, Allianz Stadium, Sydney, Saturday, July 5, kick-off 8pm local time/11am Irish time):

15. Hugo Keenan (Leinster Rugby/Ireland)
14. Mack Hansen (Connacht Rugby/Ireland) #867
13. Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors/Scotland) #878
12. Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors/Scotland) #863
11. Blair Kinghorn (Toulouse/Scotland)
10. Fin Smith (Northampton Saints/England) #862
9. Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints/England) #860
1. Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby/Scotland) #868
2. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks/England) #851
3. Finlay Bealham (Connacht Rugby/Ireland) #856
4. Tadhg Beirne (Munster Rugby/Ireland) (capt) #838
5. James Ryan (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) #880
6. Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints/England) #865
7. Josh van der Flier (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) #874
8. Ben Earl (Saracens/England) #857

Replacements:

16. Dan Sheehan (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) #873
17. Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears/England) #859
18. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) #818
19. Joe McCarthy (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) #871
20. Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors/Scotland) #869
21. Jac Morgan (Ospreys/Wales) #861
22. Ben White (Toulon/Scotland)
23. Marcus Smith (Harlequins/England) #855