‘Enjoy It And Work Hard’ – Osborne Ready To Seize The Moment As New Lion

Jamie Osborne is getting used to these big debut days in the Southern Hemisphere. A year ago it was in the green jersey of Ireland against South Africa in Pretoria, and Tuesday night will see him wear the British & Irish Lions shirt for the first time.

Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium will host the Lions’ final midweek match of the 2025 tour, and Osborne, who was only called up to the squad as injury cover less than a fortnight ago, will partner captain Owen Farrell in the tourists’ midfield.

His first caps for Leinster and Ireland came when he was just 19 and 22 respectively, so the proud Naas RFC representative has grown accustomed to rising to big occasions at a young age, something he is clearly determined to do so again in Lions red.

“I think every player dreams of it,” he said, speaking following the team announcement for the clash with the First Nations & Pasifika XV.

“I probably didn’t have much hopes for it after the initial squad announcement. I wasn’t really thinking about it but it was amazing to get the call (to join the squad). I rang my mum straight away and she was delighted.

“You don’t know if you’re going to get another opportunity to play but it’s an unbelievable experience to get out here. Not every player gets to do it, so definitely enjoy it and work hard.”

A multi-skilled back who ticks a lot of boxes in terms of his athletic ability, his game awareness and understanding, and his execution under pressure, Osborne’s first twelve months in the Test arena have seen him start at full-back, on the right wing, and at outside centre.

His highlights for Ireland so far include that try-scoring debut against the Springboks, and a second score in the Triple Crown-clinching win away to Wales. He saw out the season with silverware with Leinster, scoring seven tries in his last eight games.

The 23-year-old continued that impressive form in Ireland’s summer tour opener against Georgia, and was due to play against Portugal before Lions head coach Andy Farrell, the man who gave him his first international cap, required his presence in Australia.

Recalling how he found out about his call-up as cover following Blair Kinghorn’s knee injury against the ACT Brumbies, he admitted: “It was out of the blue. ‘Faz’ didn’t say anything to me, but I was just in Lisbon (with the Ireland squad).

“I got a phone call on Thursday (July 10) at 11 o’clock and saw his name and thought, ‘This is probably good’.

“I was in a taxi. We were actually all going to a barber. There was five of us there so it was good fun.

“The lads were probably celebrating more than myself. Craig Casey, Cian Prendergast, Jack Crowley, I don’t want to forget lads, Darragh Murray too.”

Flying from Lisbon to Dubai and then on to Brisbane, Osborne had an advantage over some of the later arrivals into the Lions camp given the high number of Leinster and Ireland players involved, and his familiarity too with the Farrell-led coaching team.

Rooming with Josh van der Flier, whom he gives top marks for being ‘nice and chilled, neat and tidy, and not snoring’, the 2024 World Rugby Men’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year nominee has been able to hit the ground running behind the scenes.

Now it is about transferring that onto the pitch as he takes centre stage as part of a new-look Lions side, lining out against a First Nations & Pasifika selection that has captain Kurtley Beale at out-half, and Lalakai Foketi and David Feliuai as the centre pairing.

“You’re definitely nervous (coming into the Lions squad as a new player). I think it gets a little easier the older you get, but it definitely helped that there’s a lot of Irish players and Leinster players in camp, and the coaching staff, most of whom I’ve worked with before.

“That definitely helps, and I would say that I was less nervous than maybe a few of the Scottish lads who have come in recently.

“The terminology is different but there’s a lot of similar stuff, so it’s just getting your head around that, and then a few different plays, but a lot of it similar enough and it takes a day and a bit of a walk through to get your head around it.”

He said that he took a lot of confidence from his maiden performances for Ireland in South Africa last summer, before picking up three more caps in the autumn and then playing the full 80 minutes against both Wales and France in his first Guinness Men’s Six Nations.

Equally comfortable in the back-three or in the centre positions, Osborne’s versatility was used to its full extent by Leinster during the 2024/25 campaign. Six of his starts came at full-back, four at inside centre, two at outside centre, and three on either wing.

While frustrated not to feature in the latter stages of the Investec Champions Cup, he made sure to finish the year strongly, including a brace of tries against semi-final opponents Glasgow Warriors on the way to the province winning the BKT United Rugby Championship.

As for Tuesday night, the Kildare youngster is looking forward to playing alongside former England skipper Owen Farrell, who linked up with the Lions for his fourth tour following Elliot Daly’s fractured forearm, and ensuring the team get the best out of themselves.

“Everyone wants to put their best foot forward and win in a Lions jersey, never mind just playing in it. I want to play to the best of my ability, enjoy it as well.

“You won’t enjoy it as much if you don’t play to play as well. It’s really cool (getting to play with Owen). You can see the leadership he brings around camp and the way he speaks, it’s very impressive.

“When he speaks, everyone listens, so hopefully it’s going to be a good night tomorrow playing alongside him. I’m going to enjoy it as much as I can,” he added.