Wallabies Spring Tour squad: Tom Lynagh dropped as Joseph Suaalii, Will Skelton, Tane Edmed picked

Superstar NRL recruit Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is set to cap the ultimate redemption, with his Spring Tour call-up set to deliver a debut Wallabies cap. See all the shocks and snubs inside.

Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii’s wild year is set to be highlighted by his Wallabies debut within a month.

From being sent off in his State of Origin debut, to his emotional farewell from the Roosters, the NRL convert is being considered for selection for the spring tour Test matches after earning a call-up to the main Wallabies squad.

And coach Joe Schmidt has indicated the 21-year-old will be in line for his international debut against England or Wales.

Schmidt has not yet decided which position Suaalii will play, saying he is considering him as a fullback, wing or centre.

It’s more likely Suaalii will play against Wales in Cardiff, given how Schmidt has been introducing new players this year.

“What we’ve tended to do is probably not play them in the first test, to have a week with them first, and then build them in like we did with Marika [Koroibete] when he was in there, and Brandon, Paeng-Amosa, those sort of guys who come in later,” Schmidt said.

NRL convert Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii has come straight into the Wallabies squad for the Spring Tour.

“But I guess we get a bit of time here, we get maybe three trainings here (in Sydney) and then a couple of trainings over there, and we’ve got a few guys still recovering from the Rugby Championship, so it will depend on that mix.

“We don’t put guys in the squad to have them learn, certainly not for a full tour. Maybe for a week or two, but we’d hope that there’d be some integration into some game time.”

Suaalii was one of 34 players chosen for the main Wallabies squad for the Grand Slam spring tour against England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, and a major factor is that he will be a key part of their attacking plans against the British & Irish Lions next year.

Schmidt was impressed by what Suaalii showed in his two training sessions with the squad in Canberra last week.

“One of the things that gave us real confidence in the hub was how rugby-reactional he was around the collision area, very, very good, very quickly, in what we were looking for, even though we weren’t doing full contact.

“In his application, he is very intentional about how he learns and what he delivers.

“So those things gave us a bit of confidence to where we’ve ended up now with him being selected in the Wallabies squad.”

Schmidt resisted the idea of selecting Suaalii in Rod Seib’s Australia XV squad that plays Bristol and England A during this tour, intending to hand him a Test debut before the Lions series.

“I’d like to think that that will be the case, because if he doesn’t, and part of it, as much as we think maybe it might have been better to come through with Seiby, part of it is that we play the Lions next,” Schmidt said.

“So if he doesn’t debut on this tour, then there’s very little window.

“There may be one opportunity to play before the Lions next year, and that would be it. So for us, we feel a little bit of pressure to be able to fast-track him and also to integrate those other guys as well.”

Will Skelton has also been called into the squad, as an overseas addition. Picture: Getty

Schmidt has learned lessons from Roger Tuivasa-Sheck’s mixed transition from the NRL to the All Blacks, and plans to ensure Suaalii makes a better adjustment.

“I was involved with Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, outstanding rugby league player, very high-profile player, when he went across to the Blues and then into the All Blacks,” Schmidt said.

“The collision area was no problem for him, but just post-collision, some of those things that are very different around the ruck in rugby league versus around the ruck in rugby union, those aspects we’d just like to fast-track as much of that as we can, in training and in any game time that he may get.”

Five-eighth Tom Lynagh has been dropped, and Tane Edmed has been elevated to the Wallabies’ spring tour squad, joining overseas additions Will Skelton and Samu Kerevi.

Koroibete has missed out altogether, while Joe Schmidt’s first Wallaby captain Liam Wright and winger Filipo Daugunu will miss the trip due to injury, while hooker Dave Porecki was ruled out due to family reasons.

Edmed, who was playing in New Zealand’s National Provincial Championship just weeks ago, now becomes a genuine contender for the Wallabies’ No.10 jersey, competing against Noah Lolesio and Den Donaldson in the top squad.

Lynagh, meanwhile, has been relegated to the touring Australia XV team having played four Tests this year under Schmidt, and is first expected to travel to Japan with Queensland Reds for their two-match tour to play Robbie Deans’ Panasonic Wild Knights.

Seib said: “To have 14 Wallabies as part of the group illustrates the depth that’s currently being created in Australian Rugby.”

“This tour represents a great opportunity for this group of players and staff to test themselves against two high-quality Northern Hemisphere opponents and is a challenge we’re all looking forward to.”

Originally published as Wallabies Spring Tour squad: Tom Lynagh dropped as Joseph Suaalii, Will Skelton, Tane Edmed picked