Wallabies: Rob Valetini fit for second Test against Lions
Wallabies star Rob Valetini has declared himself 'good to go' for Australia's do-or-die clash with the British and Irish Lions on Saturday night at the MCG and has backed the decision not to play him in his team's first Test loss in Brisbane.
The presence of the intimidating flanker was sorely missed by the Wallabies in the Lions' 27-19 weekend win at Suncorp Stadium.
Missing the game hurt, Valetini thought he was a 'shoo-in' to overcome a calf injury and be fit for the match.
'But it was a smart idea just to have a week off and get through some more training and a bit of more loading through the calf,' Valetini said in Melbourne.
'I did a session Saturday morning. I did a pretty tough session there, so (the calf) feels good to go.
'I had to put all my focus through my recovery and getting through all my exercise and trying to get the body right for the next two Tests.'
Rob Valetini is ready to return to Australia's forward pack on Saturday night against the British and Irish Lions. Picture:However the third Test on Saturday week in Sydney will mean nothing if the Lions clinch the three-game series with a win at the MCG.
'I was eager to get on the field (in Brisbane) but couldn't, and that's the challenge for us this week, knowing what's coming and trying to prepare for that,' said Melbourne-born Valetini, who hopes to deliver a strong performance in front of family and friends.
Not that he's feeling any extra pressure to do so despite the series being on the line for the Wallabies.
'I feel like it's just another game of rugby and something I've been playing ever since I was young,' Valetini said.
'I just try to go out there and just do my job, whether that's carrying (the ball) or doing the tackling. I'm just trying to do my bit for the team, and hopefully I can help the other boys as well.'
Veteran Wallabies prop James Slipper welcomed the likely return of Valetini, a two-time John Eales Medal winner.
'His size definitely helps – he's a really good player,' Slipper said of the 26-year-old ACT Brumbies back-rower.
'He gives a lot of boys around him a lot of confidence just the way he goes about his business.'
Wallabies prop James Slipper has now played in two series against the British and Irish Lions. Picture: David Gray / AFP)
Slipper suggested the Wallabies pack would also be boosted by the expected return of towering lock Will Skelton, who also missed the first Test with a calf problem.
'He (Valetini) won't be the only one that we'll be looking forward to seeing back out there this week. We've got a pretty full fit squad to pick from this weekend,' Slipper said.
Slipper has now played in two series against the Lions after also being part of the Wallabies squad that lost 2-1 in 2013 when Australia won the second Test of the series – also in Melbourne – to ensure a decider a week later.
'The belief is there in the group. It's about diving into that and making sure we prepare really well,' he said.
Originally published as Rob Valetini set to return from calf injury to play for Wallabies in do-or-die battle with British and Irish Lions

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Perth Now
16 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Suns turn tables on premiers in crucial QClash romp
Gold Coast have shrugged Brisbane's QClash chokehold and cemented their top-eight standing with a historic 66-point AFL win. The Suns had lost 12 of the past 13 Queensland derbies to the defending premiers. But on Saturday, with a maiden finals berth on the radar, the hosts called the shots in a 20.10 (130) to 9.10 (64) romp at a wet People First Stadium. Victory, in front of 20,833 fans, was the Suns' biggest in a QClash, while their 12th win this season is a club-high. Captain Noah Anderson (33 touches) did the early damage, while ruckman Jarrod Witts dominated, and coach Damien Hardwick's bold selection calls were vindicated. Victory pushed the Suns (12-6), who have a game in hand, to seventh in a congested top eight, while the Lions (13-5-1) missed a chance to at least briefly occupy top spot. Matt Rowell (37 touches, 14 clearances, 12 tackles) won the Marcus Ashcroft Medal, and the recalled Alex Davies (30 touches, 10 tackles) flipped the script on the usually dominant Lions midfield. Jy Farrar (three goals) enjoyed his first AFL game since late 2023, Ben Long rediscovered his early-season form with four majors, and Bailey Humphrey (three goals, eight tackles) also shone. The Lions' Ashcroft brothers Will and Levi were well held, while Lachie Neale, Josh Dunkley and Hugh McCluggage suffered a rare engine-room loss. Victory gave the Suns a 2-1 record against the competition's top three sides in their past three games, Gold Coast now with just one top-eight opponent in their final five regular-season games. Meanwhile, the premiers next travel to the MCG to face table-topping Collingwood as part of a tough run to September. Brisbane started well with goals to Callum Ah Chee and Neale, before the Suns, fresh off an Adelaide battering a week earlier, responded. Witts set the tone at the bounce, while Davies threw his 193cm frame around and fit-again Sam Collins imposed himself in defence. The contest was drifting in the second quarter until skipper Anderson again took it by the scruff with a goal and assist inside a minute. His first drifted over the pack and was toed on the line by Farrar, before he produced a repeat of his Collingwood match-winner a fortnight earlier, streaking from the centre square and nailing a major from 50 metres after a neat one-two. The Suns' fine kicking continued when Long threaded the needle, creating a 33-point half-time buffer as heavy rain started to fall. It didn't slow Farrar, who benefited from another clever Witts tap to squeeze through his third goal. Rowell was running freely in a dominant third term, with Ben Ainsworth and Long's goals swelling the lead beyond 50 points to effectively kill the contest. Neale still amassed 36 touches, while Cam Rayner kicked three late goals to go with 19 disposals for Brisbane. Lions utility Conor McKenna (hamstring) was substituted at halftime.

News.com.au
5 hours ago
- News.com.au
Wallabies vs British and Irish Lions: Second test scores, latest talking points from the MCG
For a city that has always been lukewarm about its on-again, off-again relationship with rugby, Melbourne has turned on the charm offensive for Saturday's latest fling between Australia and the British & Irish Lions. Revelling in its reputation as Australia's sporting capital, Melbourne has embraced the so-called game they play in heaven like never before, breaking with convention by granting the Lions permission to play on Victoria's most hallowed turf. Comprising the best players from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, the Lions have already featured at some of the most iconic stadiums on the planet since they began touring the world in the late 1880s, but there's something extra about getting invited to play on the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the first time. 'When you spend time in Melbourne and speak to the locals and all Australians, they hold the MCG in a real special regard,' the Lions' captain Maro Itoje said. 'It's a privilege for us to play there in what will be an amazing stadium and an amazing crowd. If it reaches full capacity, it will definitely be the biggest stadium that I've played in, so it's something that we're looking to relish.' Melbourne knows how to throw a party and for the visiting fans, the festivities are already in full swing. An estimated 40,000 Lions' supporters have made the long trip from Europe to watch the match live from the G and have transformed the Victorian state capital into a sea of red jerseys and hoodies against the backtrack of 'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot', 'Flower of Scotland', 'Land of my Fathers' and 'Ireland's call.' From the CBD to St Kilda Beach and Lygon Streets, Melbourne's pubs and restaurants are doing a roaring trade, with Lions' and Wallabies fans side-by-side. Because Lions tours to Australia only take place every 12 years, for Wallabies' long-suffering supporters, it's a rare time they can wear the team's gold jersey with pride. After the disaster of the last World Cup, being spotted in public wearing a Wallabies jersey was almost as awkward as being caught on kiss cam at a Coldplay concert, but not this week in bustling Melbourne. While the final attendance will depend on how many members show up, Rugby Australia expects it will surpass the all-time record crowd for any Lions match of 84,188, at Sydney in 2001. 'In 10, 15 years' time will I look back on this game?' Absolutely,' Australia fullback Tom Wright said. 'I'm probably never going to play in front of 100,000 people again,' For both teams, the occasion has taken on even greater importance because the stakes could not be higher. The tourists won the opening Test 27-19 in Brisbane last weekend and will clinch the series with a game to spare if they win again at the MCG. The Wallabies are desperate to level the series and ensure the last match in Sydney is not a dead rubber and Melbourne's fickle weather has potentially come to their rescue. In theory, the forecast of rain on Saturday night should help the Wallabies, who have assembled a massive forward pack after Rob Valetini, Will Skelton and Dave Porecki were all passed fit after missing the series opener. The Australians were outplayed in the first Test but finished strongly to close the final margin to eight points after trailing by 19 early in the second half. The Wallabies' coach Joe Schmidt is banking on his big men holding the Lions at bay long enough for his replacements to run over the top of them, but also knows things don't always go to plan so he doesn't care how they get the result, as long as they do. 'We just want to win,' he said. The Lions know the ambush the Wallabies are planning for them. In 2001 and 2013, the visitors won the opening Test in Brisbane only to lose game two in Melbourne. They have made changes to their team too, with head coach Andy Farrell stacking his starting XV with nine Irishmen for what he hopes will be their crowning glory. 'We're the privileged ones that get the opportunity to do something special and hopefully create a bit of history,' Farrell said. 'There's a determined Australian side that's in our way that's going to try and stop us from doing that, so it's a hell of a Test.'

Courier-Mail
7 hours ago
- Courier-Mail
Liverpool FC's billion dollar transfer spree could break Premier League record
Don't miss out on the headlines from Football. Followed categories will be added to My News. 'The Reds have got no money and we're gonna win the league' was the chant when Liverpool went 2-0 up against Newcastle in February. Ironically, five months later, Arne Slot's men could find themselves two-up over the Magpies in the transfer market – but a lack of cash is certainly no longer on the Anfield agenda. Having already beaten the Toon Army to the £79million signing of Hugo Ekitike, Liverpool are also hoping to land Alexander Isak. Liverpool fans show their support with scarves and flags. Picture:The Reds have already smashed the British transfer for Florian Wirtz and talkSPORT understands they are willing to do so again for the Newcastle superstar. In total, Liverpool have splashed out close to £300m on Jeremie Frimpong, Ekitike, Wirtz and Milos Kerkez. A deal for Isak would see the Merseysiders break the record for the highest spend from any club in a single transfer window. Alexander Isak seems headed to Liverpool. Picture: Glyn KIRK / AFP That feat is still held by Chelsea's £391m spree on 11 signings, including Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer, in the summer of 2023/24. The Blues have a case for boasting the most successful single transfer window of all time, whether it be the arrivals of Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho, Arjen Robben, and Petr Cech under Jose Mourinho in 04/05 – or indeed, the likes of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas once the Special One returned to Stamford Bridge. A year after Real Madrid's £233m eight-man 2009 window, Mourinho even inherited the all-star Galacticos: Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Xabi Alonso, and Karim Benzema. However, Rory Jennings believes Liverpool's ability to blend marquee signings with genuine upgrades to key areas puts them out ahead. He told talkSPORT: 'I just think that overall, this window, it's got a bit of everything. 'And if they end up signing the best striker in the Premier League, Alexander Isak, as well, I mean, I think this could be the best and most complete transfer window of all time.' Biggest transfer window spends ever 1) Chelsea (summer 2023/24) – £391m 2) Al-Hilal (summer 2023/24) – £298m 3) PSG (summer 2023/24) – £295m 4) Real Madrid (summer 2019/20) – £279m 5) Chelsea (winter 2022/23) – £278m 6) Liverpool (summer 2025/26) – £263.5m* Originally published as English Premier League transfer news: Liverpool chase Isak after summer spending spree