British and Irish Lions: Paisami, Faessler released for Reds’ tour game
Wallabies Matt Faessler and Hunter Paisami have been sent to Brisbane to boost Queensland Reds squad for next Wednesday’s clash with the British & Irish Lions.
Just two days after Lions chief Ben Calveley claimed the agreement was “very clear” that Wallabies players had to be released for the tour games, comments Australia coach Joe Schmidt rejected on Tuesday, Faessler and Paisami were given the green light to return home to Queensland.
The duo will join fellow Wallabies Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Josh Canham, Josh Flook, Jock Campbell, Angus Blyth and Seru Uru, all of whom did not make Schmidt’s 36-man squad named last week, in being available to face the tourists at Suncorp Stadium in a week’s time.
Faessler is in dire need of some game time after he missed the majority of the Super Rugby season through injury, while Paisami finds himself stuck behind preferred centre pairing Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Len Ikitau, with Filipo Daugunu providing further cover for the Wallabies clash with Fiji on Sunday week.
It is expected there will be further releases granted for the Waratahs’ own game with the Lions in Sydney, which falls on the evening prior Australia’s Test with the Pacific islanders in Newcastle.
Meanwhile, the Sydney Morning Herald reported that Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh was to meet with his Lions counterpart Calveley in Perth on Wednesday to hash out the disagreement from earlier in the week.
Schmidt had on Tuesday responded to Calveley’s comments that he was contractually obligated to release Test players for the Lions’ warm-up games Down Under.
“There’s some serious plate-spinning at the moment, trying to get ready, the ambition is there will be some going back to the Reds and some going back to the Waratahs,” Schmidt told the Sydney Morning Herald in response to the warning.
“But in reality, the Lions have got their squad. Are they going to play their best team every week? That’s unlikely, so are we going to play all the same players every week?”
Schmidt had previously allowed Test players Nick Champion de Crespigny, Dylan Pietsch, Tom Robertson, Darcy Swain and Nic White play for Western Force against the Lions, however the big names of Suaalii and Rob Valetini and other Aussie players for the Reds, Waratahs and Brumbies won’t be made available.
“We play Fiji on Sunday and the Waratahs play on a Saturday night. So it’s not like you can play Saturday and Sunday night against a team like the Lions. It would be counterproductive,” Schmidt said.
“I’m not sure whether Andy [Farrell] was part of that discussion or whether it was just coming from the CEO [Calvely], but I’ve read the tours agreement and it’s having the best intention to have the highest-quality players available and playing.
“It’s not as specific as saying every Wallaby from a state or a club has to be available to play every game that the Lions come through on.”
Australia’s widely reported lack of depth has been seen as a reason for the protection of some of their big names as well as the fact that their own warm-up fixture against Fiji in New South Wales on July 6, is the day after the Lions take on the Waratahs.
The Lions lost 28-24 to Argentina at a sold out Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Friday in their first warm-up fixture.
– Tom Hamilton from Dublin: Time will tell if Lions loss was a blip or an omen
– James Regan: Three things we learned from Lions opener
– British and Irish Lions vs. Argentina: As it happened
– Full fixture list for Lions tour of Australia
– Everything you need to know about summer Lions tour
– The full 38-man Lions squad