It looks like the British & Irish Lions will get a tough work out in Newcastle on Tuesday, 11 June ahead of their clash with the Waratahs after Combined Country coach Cameron Blades selected 18 Super Rugby players in his initial squad.
Blades named a 43-man preliminary squad today that also contains seven NSW Country, seven Queensland County and 11 Premier Club players. The final matchday 23 will be announced on Friday, 31 May, with the squad coming into camp in Newcastle on Thursday, 6 June.
Brumbies players Tom Cox and Fotu Auelua both played in the midweek fixture against Wales last summer and a number of others have been Super Rugby regulars in their respective teams this season.
“The final make-up of the side will rely on a number of factors. We’ll look at form and fitness and in the case of the Super Rugby players we’ll be reliant upon their franchises agreeing to release them for this match,” said Blades.
“We’ve done a lot of work with ARU and the Super Rugby sides over the last few months and we are aware that some of the guys that would be considered may ultimately not be available.
“There are still Super Rugby matches occurring right up until the Sunday before our match, so we completely understand if a Franchise requires their players to be available for their campaign.
“Our goal is to put the strongest 23-man squad together to face the Lions and ultimately we’d like as many of the Super Rugby players named today to be able to be considered for final selection. It is an ongoing process and we’ll continue to work closely with the Super Rugby sides.”
Combined Country XV Squad
Rikki Abraham (Prop) QLD Country
Dale Ah-Wong (Wing) QLD Country
Rory Arnold (Lock) QLD Country
Fotu Auelua (No 8) (Brumbies)
Phoenix Battye (Lock) Western Force
Corey Brown (Wing) Norths
Jarrad Butler (Back row) Queensland Reds
Sam Carter (Lock) Brumbies
Tom Carter (Centre) Waratahs
Lewie Catt (Centre) NSW Country
Duncan Chubb (Prop) Southern Districts
Tom Cox (Wing) Brumbies
Sam Cox (Fly half) Easts
Sean Cox (Centre) Easts
Ben Daley (Prop) Queensland Reds
Tim Davidson (Back row) Melbourne Rebels
Trent Dyer (Back row) Melbourne Rebels
Blake Enever (Lock) Queensland Reds
Alex Gibbon (Centre/Wing) Southern Districts
Elliot Hagan (Full back/Wing) UQ
Nic Henderson (Prop) Melbourne Rebels
David Hickey (Back row) Sydney University
Haydn Hirsimaki (Prop) QLD Country
Jed Holloway (Back row) Waratahs
Greg Holmes (Prop) Queensland Reds
Tom Kearney (Hooker) QLD Country
Josh Mann-Rae (Hooker) Brumbies
Shaun McCarthy (Fly half) QLD Country
Adam McCormack (Half back) NSW Country
Tim Metcher (Prop) Southern Districts
Peter Nau (Hooker) NSW Country
Don Nepia (Full back) NSW Country
Dan Palmer (Prop) Brumbies
Angus Roberts (Fly half/Full back) Melbourne Rebels
Beau Robinson (Back row) Queensland Reds
Tereta-Junior Siakisini (Centre) QLD Country
Eli Sinoti (Wing) NSW Country
Michael Snowden (Half back) Western Force
Richard Stanford (Lock) Eastern Suburbs
Earnest Suavai (Centre/Wing) Brothers
Paul Taula (No 8) NSW Country
Nathan Trist (Full back/Wing) Sydney University
