Overview

• The British & Irish Lions scraped past an under-strength NSW Waratahs 21-10 in Sydney, with Huw Jones scoring two first-half tries and Alex Mitchell adding a 55th-minute score in a game marred by handling errors and turnovers.
• Rested stars Finn Russell and Maro Itoje were absent for the Lions, who also lost Henry Pollock to a calf issue before kickoff and called up Owen Farrell as cover ahead of the July 19 Test opener.
• Australia edged Fiji 21-18 in Newcastle thanks to a late Harry Wilson try, but coach Joe Schmidt must reassess his fly-half options after Noah Lolesio left with whiplash and Ben Donaldson stepped in.
• Reigning world champions South Africa will host Italy at Loftus Versfeld as heavy favourites, building on a recent 54-7 win over the Barbarians and Italy’s joint-best three Tier One victories in 2024.
• Final warm-up fixtures exposed cohesion and clinical finishing issues for both the Lions and Wallabies, underlining the urgent need to sharpen tactics before the Lions–Wallabies series begins.