Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Joe McCarthy starts in the second row.Dan Sheridan/INPHO FreeTeam news 8 Irish starters as Lions name team for Test rehearsal in Canberra Andy Farrell is rolling out something very close to his first Test matchday 23. 7.48am, 7 Jul 2025 Share options Murray Kinsella Reports from Canberra LIONS HEAD COACH Andy Farrell has named eight Irish players in his strong starting XV for Wednesday’s warm-up clash with the Brumbies [KO 11am Irish time, Sky Sports]. This game is being viewed as a Test rehearsal for the Lions, with their opening meeting against Australia 10 days later. There is one more warm-up game ahead on Saturday against an AUNZ Invitational team, but this Brumbies clash has increasingly looked like the last opportunity for Farrell to run most of his Test combinations. Jamison Gibson-Park and Finn Russell will resume their halfback pairing at Gio Stadium, while Irish centres Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose start together. Scotland’s Blair Kinghorn gets his first Lions start at fullback, making up the back three with James Lowe and Tommy Freeman. Advertisement Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are picked in the front row with Ellis Genge, while Ireland’s Joe McCarthy partners captain Maro Itoje in the second row. Jack Conan is at the heart of a back row that is completed by English pair Tom Curry and Ollie Chessum, the latter at blindside. There are four more Irish players on the bench in Rónan Kelleher, Andrew Porter, Josh van der Flier and Mack Hansen, who will play in his hometown of Canberra. Interestingly, the Lions bench includes two back rows in van der Flier and Henry Pollock despite Farrell going for a 5/3 split, with Chessum providing second row cover from within the starting XV. Lions (v Brumbies): 15. Blair Kinghorn (Toulouse/Scotland) 14. Tommy Freeman (Northampton/England) 13. Garry Ringrose (Leinster/Ireland) 12. Bundee Aki (Connacht/Ireland) 11. James Lowe (Leinster/Ireland) 10. Finn Russell (Bath/Scotland) 9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster/Ireland) 1. Ellis Genge (Bristol/England) 2. Dan Sheehan (Leinster/Ireland) 3. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster/Ireland) 4. Maro Itoje (Saracens/England) (captain) 5. Joe McCarthy (Leinster/Ireland) 6. Ollie Chessum (Leicester/England) 7. Tom Curry (Sale/England) 8. Jack Conan (Leinster/Ireland) Replacements: 16. Rónan Kelleher (Leinster/Ireland) 17. Andrew Porter (Leinster/Ireland) 18. Will Stuart (Bath/England) 19. Josh van der Flier (Leinster/Ireland) 20. Henry Pollock (Northampton/England) 21. Alex Mitchell (Northampton/England) 22. Marcus Smith (Harlequins/ England) 23. Mack Hansen (Connacht/Ireland) Murray Kinsella Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “8 Irish starters as Lions name team for Test rehearsal in Canberra”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “8 Irish starters as Lions name team for Test rehearsal in Canberra”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy before taking part. Leave a Comment Submit a report Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines. Damaging the good reputation of someone, slander, or libel. Racism or Hate speech An attack on an individual or group based on religion, race, gender, or beliefs. 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