'You can see progress' - Australia will be ready to challenge British and Irish Lions in 2025, says Wallabies chief
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Published 12/09/2024 at 14:58 GMT+1
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The British and Irish Lions tour of Australia in 2025 has caused some concerns due to the dire recent form of the host nation. Fears of a one-sided series heightened further on Saturday when the Wallabies suffered a record 67-27 defeat against Argentina. But Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh insists "the progress is there" and "there is plenty of time" to build a competitive side.
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Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh insists the Wallabies are showing “progress” and can compete against the British and Irish Lions next year, despite suffering their record defeat at the weekend.
Questions and concerns have been raised ahead of the 2025 Lions tour to Australia about a potential gulf in class between the tourists and the host nation.
Australia plummeted to ninth in the world rankings, behind Italy, after suffering the worst loss in their 125-year history on Saturday, a 67-27 thrashing away to Argentina in the Rugby Championship.
But Waugh leapt to the Wallabies’ defence in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald.
"You can see the progress is there," he said.
"It is not nearly where we need it to be, but if we keep progressing at the speed with which we have moved things in the last six months, then there is plenty of time."
He added: "It is a team that is, and I hate using the word 're-building', but it is a team that is re-setting, and it takes experiences in big moments to get better.
"Obviously the enormity of the scoreline in that second half [against Argentina] was disappointing.
"But there is context that is important... we are not the most experienced team in world rugby, and we are building that experience."
Former Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt took the Australia job six months ago in the wake of Eddie Jones’ disastrous second spell in charge.
Jones won just two games out of nine in 2023 and oversaw the Wallabies' first-ever Rugby World Cup pool-stage exit following defeats to Fiji and Wales.
New Zealander Schmidt has largely fared better, beating Wales in a two-Test series in July and earning a comfortable win over Georgia.
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The Wallabies got off to a difficult start in the Championship, suffering back-to-back heavy defeats against world champions South Africa.
They bounced back by narrowly beating Argentina 20-19 in their first meeting in the South American country, before being played off the park in their second clash a week later.
Those results leave the Wallabies bottom of the Championship table with two games against the All Blacks yet to come.
Schmidt’s side then head to the Northern Hemisphere for Autumn Tests against all four of the home nations: England (November 9), Wales (Nov 17), Scotland (Nov 24) and Ireland (Nov 30).
The Lions, a selection of the best players from the four home nations, will tour Australia next summer for a three-Test series against the Wallabies in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney between July 19 and August 2.
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