Who doesn’t love a whole article talking about nothing but the big boys up front?
As stated on the Kick Offs and Kick Ons podcast, 2025, is the year of the Lion! Yes, the British and Irish Lions are packing their bags this year and travelling to Australian shores in the hope of bringing home a Test series.
An area always talked about when the north travels south, is the scrum. When Warren Gatland’s tour arrived in 2013, the scrum was a major talking point of the series. Australia’s scrum was seen as an area the Lions could target. This really came to the fore in the third Test when Englishman Alex Corbisiero caused havoc against Australia’s tighthead at the time, Ben Alexander. It was one of Alexander’s toughest days on the international stage, but the Brumbies tighthead showed his class by continuing to perform at the highest level for a further five years until 2018.
Joe Schmidt and Mike Cron have made propping stocks an absolute priority since taking on the top job. We’ve seen the likes of Alex Hodgman, Isaac Kaileaa and Zane Nonggorr earn important minutes in Schmidt’s first campaign and experienced heads like Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou have strung together back-to-back games – which is reassuring considering their injury history. Matt Faessler, Billy Pollard and even the returning Brandon Paenga-Amosa shored up the front row. This Super Rugby Pacific season will be vital for ensuring their progress continues while also giving wider options like Massimo de Lutiis and Josh Nasser valuable minutes.
The emergence of Faessler and Kailea in particular have changed the fortunes of the Wallabies’ scrum that was struggling with consistency due to the stop-start nature of Bell and Tupou’s appearances. The Wallabies’ front row is in a much better place with Mike Cron, the Scrum Doctor, at the helm.
Let’s take a look at some of the players they may face during the tour:
Loosehead prop
After the opening weekend of the Six Nations, Andrew Porter looks to be in pole position for the starting job but England’s Ellis Genge is nipping at his heels. Pierre Schoeman won’t go down without a fight and he has a big test against Ireland this week to stake his claim. Gareth Thomas is a cool and calm operator whose conditioning improves year on year and he held his own during Wales’ recent tour down under in 2024.
Ellis Genge. (Photo by Will Russell – RFU/The RFU Collection via Getty Images)
England’s Fin Baxter did well versus New Zealand last year on their end-of-year tour, highlighting his ability as a Test player. A poor showing versus Ireland isn’t the end of his chances to make the squad but he’s on the backfoot going forward.
One player Australian fans should keep an eye out for? Leinster loosehead, Jack Boyle. We love a “bolter” when we talk all things Lions and this year it could be the uncapped 22-year-old. Currently included in Ireland’s wider squad as a training panellist, Boyle is an explosive and athletic athlete who could flourish on a dry track under the lights in Perth, Sydney or the ACT. An Irish stalwart is ahead of him when it comes to opportunities in this Six Nations. As everyone in international rugby knows, it’s no easy feat getting past Cian Healy.
Hooker
I mean, did you even watch the opening round of rugby’s premier competition? Ronan Kelleher had potentially his best ever game in a green jersey and it was left for dead by Dan Sheehan and his return off the bench. Let’s not cause a debate, so I’ll limit it to the northern part of the world. Dan Sheehan is far and away the best hooker in the northern hemisphere. He could arguably play most positions on the field, outside centre, wing, back row? I think he could do a job. The Irish duo lock down the starting and bench slot for the Test games later this year.
Ireland’s Dan Sheehan celebrates scoring. (Photo by Evan Treacy/PA Images via Getty Images)
Looking at the midweek games, while injured for this tournament, I think Dewi Lake could be an Andy Farrell favourite. A late starter in the No.2 jersey, Lake makes the plane for his arms alone. The Welsh hooker has improved his lineout throwing and his style of play would work wonders during the midweek games. Jamie George is a bit of a legend and deserves to end his career on a high with another tour in the red jersey. I’m not writing him off by any means; he wasn’t involved in the opening weekend, but his race is far from finished. George has a history of mixing well with the other nations, often appearing in wedding photos during the off-season and still nails his detail at set piece.
Scotland’s Ewan Ashman, Theo Dan, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Rob Herring make up the chasing group.
Tighthead prop
The big boys. This group is arguably the weakest from a depth point of view in the entire Lions pack. Ireland’s Tadhg “Jukebox” Furlong has been unable to shake a persistent calf injury and it remains to be seen if he can play a part in this year’s Six Nations. Why the Jukebox? Because the hits keep coming. Furlong is a Lions touring player to a tee, and if he’s fit, he’s one of the surest players to travel. Scotland’s Zander Fagerson was involved versus South Africa in the last iteration of the tour and had a great campaign. He’s a staple of this Scotland team and would do a fantastic job should Furlong miss any time.
Tadhg Furlong. (Photo By Ashley Vlotman/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
The options following take quite a dip. Will Stuart hasn’t been able to bring his club form to the England jersey on a consistent level. He has all the attributes but lacks the clutch mentality. Dan Cole is the opposite. His dependability and consistency means he could be a key leader by example for often headless midweek teams. The Leicester man will be 38 by the time the tour kicks off and was left out of England’s current squad by Steve Borthwick. I wouldn’t be surprised if Andy Farrell saw things very differently to Borthwick, and Cole would be a great tourist. Not to mention his podcast with Ben Youngs has gotten better and better and I think they’d do a great job showcasing the game throughout the tour.
Finlay Bealham is the next man up for Ireland and is playing some of his best rugby right now. This year’s championship is an important one for the Connacht man as his performances during November could sum up the whole Irish team: he made mistakes. It must have been particularly frustrating for a player known for his skillset in particular to stumble in this area but Bealham has started strongly versus England. His performance last week was admirable after his speedbump in November. Former Englishman, now Welshman Henry Thomas and Englishman Will Stuart will be vying for a place in Andy Farrell’s wider squad.
Another bolter you ask? In the front row? Thomas Clarkson. He’s earned his place on Ireland’s bench in the No.18 shirt and don’t be surprised if you see him wear No.3 at one point during the championship. Clarkson brings great energy to the field and even filled in in the back row for Leinster earlier this year. He’s athletic, powerful and has improved under Rabah Slimani’s tutelage at Leinster.
Next week, we’ll check back in with the pecking order for the Lions’ second row and back row after Round 2 of the Six Nations Championship.
