The British and Irish Lions have become embroiled in an eligibility row on the eve of the first Test against Australia with Wallabies back row Pete Samu ruled unable to feature for the First Nations & Pasifika XV in Melbourne next week.
The Lions will face the composite selection on Tuesday at Marvel Stadium between the first and second Tests in their last midweek fixture, with the game arranged after the demise of the Melbourne Rebels.
The team will be formed of players with heritage either of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations who first inhabited Australia, or the Pacific Islands. Samu had been selected in a squad chosen by head coach Toutai Kefu, the former Australia No 8 and Tonga boss.
However, reporting from the Sydney Morning Herald revealed on Friday that Samu, who has won 33 Australia caps, had left the squad preparing in Melbourne after the 33-year-old was ruled ineligible for the game.
It is understood that after alternative opposition had been arranged following the Rebels’ demise, both the Lions and Australia had agreed that only players who had featured in the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season would be able to play for the First Nations & Pasifika XV.
While Samu has agreed a move back to Australia with the Waratahs for next year, he spent last season with Bordeaux-Begles, helping the French side win the Champions Cup. Though he was able to feature for the AUNZ Invitational XV in Adelaide last weekend, he will not play on Tuesday.
“I’m absolutely gutted, I still can’t believe that they would do it, complain about it, I suppose it is what it is, but it’s extra motivation for our boys,” Kefu told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“We’re a team that’s just been put together, we’re facing a massive challenge as it is, so he (Samu) would have definitely strengthened us, there’s no doubt about that.
“They must have been worried we were going to win. I don’t know why they would do it.”
Australia have released wing Filipo Daugunu and prop Taniela Tupou from their squad in Brisbane with a view to the pair featuring in Melbourne. Veteran playmaker Kurtley Beale and flankers Seru Uru and Rob Leota are among the other standout inclusions in Kefu’s group.
A Rugby Australia spokesperson said: “We are pleased with the First Nations & Pasifika XV’s preparation for their inaugural match against the Lions at Marvel Stadium on Tuesday.
“Pete Samu is a valued member of the Waratahs and has added greatly to the First Nations & Pasifika squad since entering camp. We had naturally hoped he would be playing in this fixture.”
The Lions, meanwhile, will be joined by Scottish pair Rory Sutherland and Ewan Ashman as cover ahead of the game as Andy Farrell’s squad grows again. Fellow call-up Darcy Graham has already united with the rest of the group, but Sutherland and Ashman started for Scotland against Samoa on Friday night.
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