The British and Irish Lions face an Australia-New Zealand Invitational XV this weekend in their final warm-up match ahead of the First Test against the Wallabies.
Andy Farrell’s side move on to Adelaide next as their whirlwind summer tour Down Under ramps up for game five of nine, having seen what many believe is their likely Test team labour to a somewhat unconvincing 36-24 victory over the ACT Brumbies on Wednesday - their fourth win in a row after the shock farewell defeat by Argentina, having thrashed both the Western Force and Queensland Reds.
Though there were improvements in attack with five tries and the set-piece remained dominant, the Lions’ breakdown problems remained in Canberra, while there were more handling errors, four tries conceded and a high penalty count as they just could not put away Australia’s best-performing Super Rugby franchise who were missing most of their Wallaby internationals.
With that patchy win coming off a hugely scrappy 21-10 success against the New South Wales Waratahs in Sydney, Farrell will be demanding improvement before the First Test against Australia, who hardly laid down a marker either in their last-gasp win over Fiji in what was their only warm-up fixture.
As expected, the majority of what is expected to be his First Test team are given the night off in Adelaide, with Farrell insisting that there are still places up for grabs in what is the final chance to impress.
Reds and future Australia head coach Les Kiss - assisted by former All Blacks boss Ian Foster in addition to the Western Force’s Simon Cron and Zane Hilton of the Melbourne Rebels - has picked a strong-looking AUNZ Invitational XV squad boasting no fewer than 17 internationals.
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV date, kick-off time and venue
The British and Irish Lions meet the AUNZ Invitational XV on Saturday July 12, 2025, with kick-off scheduled for 11am BST. That is 7:30pm local time.
The game takes place at the 53,500-capacity Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, South Australia, primarily a cricket venue for Australia, South Australia and the Adelaide Strikers, plus the Crows in Aussie rules.
How to watch British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV
TV channel: Sky Sports have exclusive broadcasting rights to the 2025 Lions tour in the UK. Coverage begins on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Action at 10am BST.
Live stream: Sky Sports subscribers can also watch the game live online via the Sky Go app. It is also available to stream via NOW, with extensive free-to-air highlights aired on Welsh-language channel S4C at 8pm on Saturday night.
Live blog: Follow Saturday’s action with Standard Sport’s live match blog.
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV team news
The headline team news from a Lions perspective is Owen Farrell being named in the matchday squad for the first time on this tour after he trained fully in Canberra earlier this week.
He is listed among the replacements and will come on to make his 19th appearance in the famous red shirt on his fourth tour, having arrived last week as a much-talked-about injury replacement for Saracens team-mate Elliot Daly.
It is Farrell’s first game since he was concussed playing for Racing 92 against Lyon in the Challenge Cup semi-finals in early May, having passed the necessary protocols and got up to speed after arriving in Sydney last Friday and watched the games against the Waratahs and the Brumbies from the stands.
After a hugely disappointing single season in France that also saw him sidelined for long periods with a lingering groin injury that required surgery, Farrell doesn’t have long to prove to dad Andy that he is worthy of a spot in the Test 23, having not played international rugby since stepping down from England duty in the aftermath of the 2023 World Cup in order to prioritise his and his family’s mental wellbeing.
The Lions have mostly reverted back to the team that played against the Waratahs, with Tadhg Beirne taking on the captaincy for the second time on this tour in the absence of the rested Maro Itoje.
Hugo Keenan will be eager to impress at full-back with Blair Kinghorn having suffered a knee injury against the Brumbies, though the latter received “positive news” following a scan on Thursday and is expected to return to action in the coming days, with Ireland’s Jamie Osborne called up as training cover in the meantime.
The AUNZ Invitational side are co-captained by the Crusaders’ Super Rugby-winning centre David Havili and Reds lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, while an impressive-looking team also includes a formidable back-row trio of Shannon Frizell, Pete Samu and Hoskins Sotutu.
Other star names include 59-cap Wallabies wing Marika Koroibete, while Tane Edmed and the uncapped Harry McLaughlin-Phillips will both be keen to make a statement amid Australia’s current fly-half shortage following the injury to Noah Lolesio.
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV lineups
British and Irish Lions XV: Keenan; Hansen, Jones, Tuipulotu, Van der Merwe; F Smith, White; Schoeman, Cowan-Dickie, Stuart; Ryan, Beirne (c), Pollock, Morgan, Earl
Replacements: Kelleher, Porter, Bealham, Cummings, Van der Flier, Mitchell, M Smith, Farrell
AUNZ Invitational XV: Stevenson; Lam, Laumape, Havili (co-c), Koroibete; Edmed, Fakatava; Ross, Paenga-Amosa, Toomaga-Allen; Blyth, Salakaia-Loto (co-c), Frizell, Samu, Sotutu
Replacements: Eklund, Fusitu'a, Dyer, Philip, Brial, Thomas, McLaughlin-Phillips, Campbell
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV head to head (h2h) history and results
The Lions previously played an ANZAC XV during their 1989 tour of Australia, when they won 19-15 in Brisbane.
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV prediction
Time is very nearly up for those Lions hopefuls currently on the outside looking in when it comes to potential Test selection - it’s now or never in terms of their chances of featuring in Brisbane next weekend.
That should sharpen minds for what is expected to be another stiff Test against strong opposition, albeit one that may struggle with some of the same issues as the Lions have faced in terms of cohesion with a number of players not used to featuring together.
Farrell will be eager to see his team come out of the blocks fast with slow starts having become a frustrating theme of the tour so far, while he will also be demanding improvements in terms of taking their opportunities, minimising the error and penalty counts and competing better at the breakdown - though the imposing trio of Frizell, Samu and Sotutu are sure to have something to say about that.
Lions to win, by 10 points.
British and Irish Lions vs AUNZ Invitational XV match odds
Lions to win: 1/8
AUNZ Invitational XV to win: 6/1
Draw: 25/1
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).
