Scotland duo handed British & Irish Lions starts against Argentina
The British and Irish Lions begin their preparations for their summer tour to Australia with a meeting with Argentina on Friday night.
Two Scotland stars have been named in the British and Irish Lions starting side as they step up their preparations for their tour to Australia by taking on Argentina at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium on Friday night.
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England lock Maro Itoje has been named as captain for the tour down under and he will lead the Lions into their 1888 Cup clash with the Pumas as head coach Andy Farrell gets a first chance to watch his side in action. Scotland wing star Duhan van der Merwe is one of five starting players preparing for their second Lions tour and international team mate Sione Tuipulotu will make his Lions bow as he looks to stake an early claim to start the first test against the Wallabies next month.
Scotland are also represented amongst the replacements as Edinburgh Rugby prop Pierre Schoeman and Glasgow Warriors lock Scott Cummings will hope to see some action in Dublin as the Lions kickstart an exciting summer with a meeting against an Argentina side sat in fifth place in the World Rugby rankings. Fellow Scotland stars Finn Russell, Blair Kinghorn and Huw Jones will have to wait until the opening tour match down under to gain their first Lions appearances of the summer.
What has Andy Farrell said about British & Irish Lions v Argentina?
He told the official Lions website: “Congratulations to Maro Itoje ahead of leading out the Lions for the first time - it is a truly special moment and one that very few players ever get to experience. Maro has led the group well during our time in Portugal and then Dublin this week. This is also our first opportunity to show what the 2025 Lions are about and what we want to stand for as a team. We know that Argentina will challenge us up front and out wide - so Friday night will be a tough contest, but also a great occasion for all the fans.”
The British & Irish Lions XV v Argentina
Backs
15. Marcus Smith (Harlequins/ England) 14. Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints/England) 13. Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors/Scotland) 12. Bundee Aki (Connacht Rugby/Ireland) 11. Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby/Scotland) 10. Fin Smith (Northampton Saints/England) 9. Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints/England)
Forwards
1. Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears/England) 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks/England) 3. Finlay Bealham (Connacht Rugby/Ireland) 4. Maro Itoje (Saracens/England) (c) 5. Tadhg Beirne (Munster Rugby/Ireland) 6. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks/England) 7. Jac Morgan (Ospreys/Wales) 8. Ben Earl (Saracens/England)
Replacements
16. Ronan Kelleher (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) 17. Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby/Scotland) 18. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster Rugby/Ireland) 19. Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors/ Scotland) 20. Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints/England) 21. Tomos Williams (Gloucester Rugby/Wales) 22. Elliot Daly (Saracens/England) 23. Mack Hansen (Connacht Rugby/Ireland)
Who is in the Argentina XV to face the British and Irish Lions?
Backs
15 Santiago Carreras 14 Rodrigo Isgro 13 Lucio Cinti 12 Justo Piccardo 11 Ignacio Mendy 10 Tomas Albornoz 9 Gonzalo Garcia
Forwards
1 Mayco Vivas 2 Julian Montoya (c) 3 Joel Sclavi 4 Franco Molina 5 Pedro Rubiolo 6 Pablo Matera 7 Juan Martin Gonzalez 8 Joaquin Oviedo
Replacements
16 Bautista Bernasconi 17 Boris Wenger 18 Francisco Coria Marchetti 19 Santiago Grondona 20 Joaquin Moro 21 Simon Benitez Cruz 22 Matias Moroni 23 Santiago Cordero
British and Irish Lions fixtures
20/06/2025 - The Lions v Argentina (Aviva Stadium, Dublin) 28/06/2025 - Western Force v The Lions (Optus Stadium, Perth) 02/07/2025 - Queensland Reds v The Lions (Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane) 05/07/2025 - NSW Waratahs v The Lions (Allianz Stadium, Sydney) 09/07/2025 - ACT Brumbies v The Lions (GIO Stadium, Canberra) 12/07/2025 - Invitational AU & NZ v The Lions (Adelaide Oval, Adelaide) 19/07/2025 - Wallabies v The Lions (Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane) 22/07/2025 - First Nations & Pasifika XV v The Lions (Marvel Stadium, Melbourne) 26/07/2025 - Wallabies v The Lions (MCG, Melbourne) 02/08/2025 - Wallabies v The Lions (Accor Stadium, Sydney)
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