Lions tour Aussie takes: The Suaalii decision and the Finn Russell factor

The series is dead; the British & Irish Lions just did enough to break the hearts of the nation and seal the three-match Test tour in just two games.

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It was one of the toughest losses to take as an Aussie; we lose a lot, but that one stung and continues to do so. Unfortunately, the punches keep coming because the Wallabies must dust themselves off for the third Test in Sydney this weekend.

Joe Schmidt made some miscalculations surrounding this match, and Andy Farrell must be said to have outdone him, and for that, the Lions’ coach and the players must be congratulated on winning the series.

Wallaby captain Harry Wilson at the Melbourne Cricket Ground The side finalised their preparations at the iconic venue today ahead of Saturday’s second Test against the British & Irish Lions. Wallaby captain Harry Wilson at the Melbourne Cricket Ground The side finalised their preparations at the iconic venue today ahead of Saturday’s second Test against the British & Irish Lions.

So, no rest for the wicked, the Lions will look to make it three-zip, the Wallabies must avoid a whitewash to silence the people from the north and to restore some confidence in the side ahead of the Rugby Championships in just a few weeks.

Will Skelton and Rob Valetini have set the bar

Skelton was everywhere and into everything, and Valetini was as dominant as ever in contact. An issue with picking these two players is that you limit options at the lineout, but lineout coach and former Lion, Geoff Parling, only saw this as an opportunity.

The Wallabies’ first lineout of the game saw them throw it to Skelton at the front of the lineout and immediately get on the front foot.

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The second lineout they threw to ‘Bobby V’, and with their drawbacks cancelled out, they went about wreaking havoc on the Lions in attack and defence.

Valetini carried nine times for 28.4 metres, as well as 18.1 post-contact metres. Skelton also carried nine times for 11.9 metres and 10.5 post-contact metres, but with each carry came a positive by-product for the Wallabies.

Lions players were getting penalised for being offside after the duo’s gainline carries, Lions were getting caught on the wrong side of the ruck and failing to roll away in time and at least two Lions players were engaging in the tackle on every carry.

Valetini and Skelton’s performances also meant that they brought the best out of captain Harry Wilson as well.

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The one-two punch of this duo was unstoppable, but it must be said they were on the park for far too short, and Schmidt had no like-for-like replacements selected on the bench.

Why Schmidt won’t pick Wilson as his captain

Wilson was the emotional reflection of all Australians in his post-match interview with Stan Sports. He was close to tears, unable to comment on things because the emotion was too much, the moment too raw.

He wore his heart on his sleeve for Australia, and he is a bloke the Wallabies like following. He is a man who values leading Australia above all else, but so far in the Test season, it must be said, he hasn’t been convincing on the field.

In the past three games, he’s carried 8, 8, and 13 times in the most recent Test, for 21, 12, and 17 metres. At the MCG, he was the busiest carrier over 80 minutes, carrying 4 more times than the next forward for a total of 31.6 post-contact metres, being 2.4m per carry post-contact.

To put it in perspective, in the Fiji game Wilson made 21.2 post-contact metres, in Test 1 against the Lions he made just 12.8m, proving how impactful Valetini and Skelton are for his game.

Furthermore, Valeteni made nine carries in 40 minutes for 2.0 of post-contact metres per carry, and Langi Gleeson was at a whopping 3.4 post-contact metres per carry over 40 minutes for his eight carries.

Wilson tackled at an average of 83 per cent but he is not a dominant tackler, and finally, he’s been a ripe target at the lineout, having balls stolen off him in both the Fiji Test and the first test against the Lions in Brisbane.

He was used more sparingly and to better effect in Melbourne but is not convincing as an option heading into the TRC.

He gives his all to the jersey, but Schmidt must have a serious think about selection heading into this third and final Test of the Lions tour, as well as the TRC, if he is to remain ambiguous about picking a full-time captain.

To point out an issue without offering an alternative is meaningless. Putting Nick Champion de Crespigny, Tom Hooper or even a Lukhan Salakaia-Loto to blindside flanker and then Valetini to no.8 with Gleeson on the bench are viable and worthwhile options.

What to do with a superstar like Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii

His world-class raw talent was on show for the entire world when he made the 25m break to put Tom Wright away in the 30th minute, allowing the Wallabies to score back-to-back tries.

But that was well and truly his ceiling for the night in what was another poor defensive effort with handling errors strewn throughout.

Suaalii was turned inside out by the Lions’ centres, and his defensive effort of 8/11 doesn’t reflect how out of position he often was.

On a couple of occasions, he was caught high, ahead of Len Ikitau and realised he was marking no one, grabbing at thin air.

This will only get harder as the Wallabies prepare to play the Springboks in South Africa in August and will face the best centre pairing in the world in Jesse Kriel and Damian de Allende.

Suaalii is a supreme specimen, but he is young, inexperienced, and frankly has not been done any favours by his national or club coaches for having him change his position regularly.

He is learning very quickly that Test-match rugby is a brute of a beast, and it requires finesse as well as brawn.

He can often be seen trying to emulate perfect technique in his detail, carrying low, long place, driving up in the ruck clearance, low stance over the ruck, arriving early, but it is a very steep learning curve, and things are not set to get any easier.

Hunter Paisami and Ikitau should be handed the reins in the third Test, and Suaalii put into the No.23 jersey, he doesn’t need to be so exposed at such an early stage of his career.

Taniela Tupou and Lukhan-Salakaia Loto are a safe bet

Getting outmuscled has been a theme for the Wallabies in this series so far, in one half or the other, but bringing in Tupou and Salakaia-Loto would go a long way to prevent this.

Tupou is good for one or two penalties at the scrum, depending on what referee you’re dealing with; likewise, LSL can flirt with the wrong side of discipline, but the Wallabies can afford these penalties.

In the past two Tests, the Wallabies have won the penalty count, conceding fewer than the Lions, and yet, the Lions have won both games.

Conceding a penalty is sometimes better than a try and other times not, but what you would guarantee from these two is no backwards steps and more ball carrying threats for the Lions to deal with.

Salakaia-Loto has been dominant against the Lions three times in this tour, and Tupou showed that he can have plenty of running in him for 50 minutes, after a strong performance for the First Nations & Pasifika side in Adelaide last Tuesday.

Tupou would expose Andrew Porter’s scrummaging techniques and wouldn’t fold to Ellis’ Genge’s shunt at the set piece.

Likewise, Salakaia-Loto is an elite lineout operator with his basketball background and often attracts multiple defenders in the carry.

The Wallabies are still searching for an 80-minute performance in 2025; these two men would aid that quest.

Finn Russell has been elite for the Lions

In the first Test, it was the long cut-out pass to Sione Tuipulotu that was the memory seared into the memory of the Australian fans. On Saturday night, a far less flashy skill set was the reason for Aussie’s pain.

Russell kicked for touch so accurately that he put the Wallabies back at their front door from almost anywhere on the pitch.

A penalty for a poor Suaalii cleanout on the Lions’ own 41m sees Russell hoof the ball to within 7m of the Wallabies’ tryline.

That is severe punishment to pay for a split-second’s mistiming, but that is what Russell can do to you.

While Farrell has brought exciting Marcus Smith, regimented Fin Smith, and battle-hardened Owen Farrell on the tour as his other playmakers, it is clear to see why Farrell entrusted the ship to Russell.

With a shrug of the shoulders, he forgets about a pass he throws into touch, a stray kick or perhaps a fumbled ball, but what the Lions have is a rugby player with a profound understanding of rugby, who sees the game in slow motion.

Russell is one of the best fly-halves in the world, top three even, his superior class to the Australian No.10s is a big reason for the Lions’ Test successes.

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