As Dan McKellar delivered the three markers Taniela Tupou would be judged on, Lions coach Andy Farrell said his side were expecting the ‘Tongan Thor’ to bounce back for the Waratahs on Saturday night given the prop has a “point to prove”.
Despite struggling during this year’s Super Rugby campaign, Tupou was included as one of six props in Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies squad to face Fiji on Sunday in Newcastle. The Test serves as a proper hit out before the Lions series officially gets underway on July 19.
But with Allan Alaalatoa expected to start against Fiji, Tupou was released from Wallabies camp earlier this week with Schmidt instead believing that the tight-head prop would benefit most by playing big minutes for the Waratahs.
The hit out will also allow Wallabies selectors to get more of a feel as to whether Tupou is up for taking on the Lions after an underwhelming campaign for the Waratahs in 2025.
Tupou, who is set for a high profile overseas move to Racing 92, never quite got going at the set-piece for the Waratahs and didn’t show any of the destructive ball-carrying that had become synonymous with the front-rower and first put him on the map. Instead, Tupou, 29, had become little else than an expensive ruck hitting prop.
It’s why McKellar dropped Tupou back to the bench for the second half of the Super Rugby season – a staggering thought only six months earlier.
But after naming the 58-Test prop in the No.3 jersey, the former Wallabies assistant coach said he wanted Tupou to stand up and show what he was counted for on the eve of the Lions series and delivered three demands.
“To go out there in set piece first and foremost, back that up with physicality and the ability to repeat it,” McKellar said.
“They are the three things I talk to tight forwards about every day. I want him to be really good around scrum, lineout, maul and then impose himself on the game as we know he can do with ball in hand and without it…
“So (it’s a) great chance for him to really stamp his case for selection for the Test series. Dominant set piece is a big part of what we do. Ideally, we can get dominance at scrum time, because off the back of that you get field position, you are in the penalty count, and you game just flows from there.”
Taniela Tupou must deliver on three key tasks against the Lions to prove his Wallabies credentials. (Photo by Mark Kolbe Photography/Getty Images)
While the Lions have smashed the Force and Reds to start their campaign on Australian soil, one of the few areas that Farrell’s side haven’t quite flexed their muscle has been at the scrum.
While Ben O’Keeffe didn’t quite reward the Force’s early dominance before the momentum switched after half-time, fellow New Zealand referee James Doleman pinged the Lions for hinging and failing to scrum straight against the Reds in Brisbane.
Tupou can paint a darker picture for the Lions if he scrums straight and forces Scottish loose-head prop Pierre Schoeman to collapse.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday night after making mass changes to his side, Farrell said his side was expecting Tupou, who has candidly spoken about his form struggles this season, to try and play his way back into the Wallabies.
“I’ve respected everything that I’ve heard and seen this year from him,” he said.
“I think he’s very brave of what he’s done, and I love the nature of him putting himself out there and continue to put himself in the firing line, as in professional sport, every single week.
“And I know that he was in the Australian squad, he’s now dropped back out to play against us, so I suppose he’s got a point to prove, and I’m sure he’ll be well up for that.
“Otherwise, why would you be there?”
Taniela Tupou makes a break against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
Farrell knows only too well what Tupou is capable of, having seen him play some of his best footy over the past few years, including during last year’s final Test of the year in Dublin where Tupou scrummed well and made one massive break centre field.
“I’ve come up against him quite some time, and he’s very disruptive, to say the least,” he responded to The Roar. “And good at what he does.
“Ireland played against him in the autumn, and you saw the pace that he had, that he went straight up the middle of the field there.
“So he’s not just a disruptive scrummager, he’s certainly got power and pace on both sides of the ball, that’s for sure.”
The Lions could sow more seeds of doubt regarding Tupou’s selection during the series if they curtail his strengths at Allianz Stadium on Saturday.
Given the lack of Test proven quality behind Alaalatoa, it could prove to be a pivotal moment ahead of the series.
But Farrell said his side was just focusing on themselves rather than trying to complicate the Wallabies selection picture.
“Oh, look, we’re trying to concentrate on ourselves, how we implement our game plan, our identity through this tour, and that’s the main thing that we need to keep concentrating on,” he said.
The Waratahs are massive $34 outsiders for the match, with McKellar’s side 40 point outsiders.
That’s no surprise given that the Waratahs missed the Super Rugby finals series and have half the number of internationals turning out for them than the Reds had on Wednesday night, but McKellar said his side wouldn’t go down without a fight.
“You just have to put them under pressure. They’re a quality side, and as I’ve said to the players all week… this is a Test match,” McKellar said.
“We are not playing Super Rugby or anything else. We are playing a high-quality Test team. But they’ve got two arms and two legs, and you just have to put them under pressure.
“The Force and the Reds, they have done that, but being able to do it and sustain it for long periods of time is the challenge.
“They bring on eight high-quality Test players off the bench.
“It’s a fair challenge. But as has been proven in the past, it’s certainly doable. You just have to be very good.”
