10 h. ago Australia issues robust Lions response as demand to release star players for tour games rejected

Joe Schmidt hits back over claims he is contractually obliged to release players

Sport

10 h. ago Joe Schmidt hits back at British and Irish Lions over demands to release Australia stars for tour games

Wallabies coach standing his ground after Lions CEO Ben Calveley warning as war of words escalates before first tour match

Events

11 h. ago The Breakdown | Next Gen Wallabies sense Farrell’s Lions are there for the taking

Australia coach Joe Schmidt has lifted team from lowest ebb and made a country feel it can win againAustralian rugby liked what it saw – and didn’t see – last week, as the British & Irish Lions got their 2025 tour off to a losing start against Argentina. Sure, it was the opening game of a 10-match odyssey and Andy Farrell’s men were lacking cohesion after only two weeks in camp. But for a young Wallabies side rising fast under their head coach, Joe Schmidt, it put blood in the water and proved the tourists are very beatable.Schmidt’s 6-7 record in his first season in charge of the Wallabies might not cost Lions fans much sleep but Farrell, his former second‑in‑command at Ireland, will sniff the seeds of ambush. In their last start in November, the Wallabies led Ireland 13-5 only to lose 22-19. Schmidt won’t let that happen again. The 2025 Wallabies these Lions face are light years from the lambs Eddie Jones led to slaughter at the 2023 World Cup in France. Continue reading...

Politics

11 h. ago Joe Schmidt rejects Lions demands to release Australia stars for tour games

Wallabies coach says agreement is not to release all playersSchmidt highlights clash between Waratahs and Fiji gamesThe Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has hit back at the British and Irish Lions management, insisting Australia are adhering to the tour agreement regarding the release of international players for pre-Test games and that his front-line home players were only unavailable because they were preparing to face Fiji on Sunday week.The issue has flared up again this week after the Lions chief executive, Ben Calveley, said he expected Schmidt to release Wallaby players back to their Super Rugby franchises for their respective games against the touring team. Some fringe Wallabies are due to feature for Western Force this Saturday but it is set to be a different story for the subsequent games against the Reds, the Waratahs and the Brumbies. Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago Wallabies boss Joe Schmidt rejects Lions’ demands as player release row rumbles on

The Lions have demanded that the Australia coach release more of his squad to feature in the tour games ahead of the three-Test series

Economics

28 h. ago SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: Australia head coach Joe Schmidt is playing mind games... but this is why it would be a huge mistake to keep his Wallaby stars out of the Lions warm

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: No one wins if Australia choose not to release their best players to feature in the warm-up matches of the British & Irish Lions tour.

Sport

31 h. ago Lions warn Joe Schmidt over Wallabies player release for tour matches

Ben Calveley expects competitive Force side to face LionsTour could open up to other countries such as FranceEvery big tour is a hectic learning curve as the 2025 British & Irish Lions are already finding. The squad had to call off their post-arrival recovery dip in the Pacific Ocean – a letdown both for local news crews and the lurking sharks off Cottesloe beach – because of inclement weather and the first media squall of the trip has also blown in.The Lions chief executive, Ben Calveley, has made clear the touring side expect the Wallabies head coach, Joe Schmidt, to make his national players available for their Super Rugby teams before the Test series commencing next month and the host nation has been gently reminded of that contractual detail following the Lions’ arrival in Australia. Continue reading...

Events

32 h. ago British and Irish Lions send 'very clear' Australia warning over releasing Test stars for tour matches

Chief executive Ben Calveley reminds Wallabies and Joe Schmidt of contractual obligations ahead of games against Super Rugby opposition

Events

3 d. ago Andy Farrell issued major warning ahead of Australia reunion with Joe Schmidt

Former Australia captain James Horwill believes the Wallabies can spring a surprise this summer when they meet the challenge of the British and Irish Lions

Events

4 d. ago Australia coach Joe Schmidt takes sly dig at Lions with ‘southern hemisphere’ centres comment

Andy Farrell has paired Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu in midfield for his side’s opening tour fixture against Argentina

Politics

1 week ago Barcelona hold talks with top Arsenal target as Lamine Yamal teases transfer

Barcelona have entered the race for Athletic Bilbao star Nico Williams, who is also on Arsenal's radar, with the Spanish giants holding talks as the player lays out his demands

Sport

3 w. ago Florian Wirtz: Real Madrid 'launch transfer hijack' to leave Liverpool move in the balance

The most in-demand player in Europe has looked destined for the Premier League

Politics

4 w. ago Chelsea £84m target is on Liverpool's radar, is rated by Lionel Messi and rejected Newcastle

Chelsea are reportedly in the hunt for Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike, who has also turned down a move to Newcastle in the past, while Lionel Messi is also a big fan

Economics

4 w. ago Miss England row continues as beauty queen who says she was made to 'feel like a prostitute' savages bosses for releasing footage of her

Milla Magee, quit the Miss World beauty pageant because she claimed that she was made to sit with groups of middle-aged male guests while 'thanking them' for their money.

Politics