Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh has shut the door on Israel Folau playing against the British and Irish Lions this winter.
Folau, 35, earlier this week put up his hand to take part in the invitational matches against the Lions.
Although the three-time John Eales Medallist was ineligible to take the field for the Wallabies, there was a faint possibility the former fullback could feature in the combined AUNZ team to take on the Lions in Adelaide on July 12, or the Indigenous and Pasifika side will that takes on the Lions in Melbourne on July 22.
That possibility ended on Saturday as Waugh said Folau, who has since switched allegiances to Tonga and is still playing in Japan, didn’t meet the selection criteria to feature in the contest.
“The reality is that the AU-NZ game is made up of Australian eligible players and obviously New Zealand players,” Waugh told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“So essentially, once a player – no matter who the player is – is ineligible for Australia, then that has an impact on their availability.
“On the First Nations and Pasifika team … they need to be Australian Super Rugby squad members and where there’s a gap in competitiveness or strength for welfare reasons, there will be the opportunity to choose some players out of Moana Pasifika and the [Fijian] Drua.”
Israel Folau won’t be taking on the Lions in 2025. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
Waugh’s stance ensures the ongoing discussion surrounding Folau’s complicated relationship with RA won’t be a constant sideshow during the important year for rugby in Australia.
Indeed, newspapers and television bulletins had already dedicated considerable space highlighting Folau’s desire to play in recent days.
It comes almost six years after former Rugby Australia CEO Raelene Castle terminated Folau’s contract following a social media post that went against the governing body’s code of conduct.
Folau launched a claim for wrongful dismissal against RA, claiming he had lost $14 million in potential revenue and the opportunity to have led the Wallabies.
Phil Waugh has shut the door on Israel Folau’s homecoming. (Photo by Brendon Thorne – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
In early December 2019, after a horror World Cup campaign for the Wallabies, Folau and RA reached a settlement agreement.
While the result ensured RA avoided a potentially messy legal trial in the Federal Circuit Court, it reportedly cost the governing body a multi-million figure.
Folau burst onto the international scene in 2013, scoring a double on Test debut against the Lions in Brisbane. He scored 37 tries in 73 Tests.
