In the second instalment of our Lions ‘Squad Builder’ series, we select our starting centres for the first Test against the Wallabies.
Having covered the back-three options last week, here we’ll be looking at who Andy Farrell might start in the centre against Australia when the first Test kicks off in Brisbane in a little over eight weeks’ time.
Four specialist centres are set to travel down under as part of the initial squad, with two representatives each from Scotland and Ireland. Will the starting pair strike a Caledonian tone though, or will it be more Hibernian-themed?
Part One of our Squad Builder Series:
RugbyLions 2025 Squad Builder: Our Starting Back Three for the First Test
7 days ago Jonny McCormickBundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu are the contenders at inside centre. Since the 2023 Rugby World Cup, where he was arguably Ireland’s standout player, Aki has remained a focal point in the squad, featuring in all but three of their 16 Tests from the start of 2024.
Tuipulotu is among the first names on the teamsheet for Scotland when fit, but he’s had more than his fair share of injuries, most recently missing the entirety of this year’s Six Nations due to a pectoral issue.
It’s a great reflection of his ability that he’s been selected to travel despite not playing a minute of Test rugby since last November. In that appearance, he scored Scotland’s opening try on their way to a resounding win against Australia.
Aki and Tuipulotu bring slightly different, but equally impressive skills to the table. Aki comfortably averages more carries (11.1 vs 9.0), defenders beaten (2.7 vs 2.1) and line breaks (0.9 v 0.1) per 80 minutes than Tuipulotu, but the latter boasts higher tackle evasion and dominant carry rates.
Defensively, Tuipulotu has a marginally better tackle success rate than Aki but has won just half as many turnovers – though he’s only conceded half as many in return.
Go Deeper:
RugbyLions 2025 Tour: The Five Biggest Omissions from the Squad Announcement
2 weeks ago Jonny McCormick, Jordan Kingston, Nick BentleyTuipulotu’s main strength is his ability to bring the best out of his teammates. Given the quality in the 2025 Lions squad, that is a scary thought for any Wallabies fan.
The Scotland captain has averaged 1.3 line-break assists per 80 minutes since the start of 2024, a rate that’s not only comfortably higher than Aki’s (0.4), but is also the best of any inside centre over that time (min. 400 minutes played).
Our Pick at Inside Centre: Sione Tuipulotu
His ability to bring others into the game means that, should Tuipulotu be at 100% capacity come 19 July, he’d be our pick for the No. 12 jersey in the opening Test.
Elliot Daly and Tommy Freeman can both slot in at outside centre. However, with their most familiar roles lying out wide, it’s likely to be a straight shootout between Huw Jones and Garry Ringrose for the No. 13 jersey.
As is the case at inside centre, it’s a battle between two players with a vastly different number of games played since the start of last year. Jones has missed just three of Scotland’s 18 games in that time, while Ringrose has played in only half of Ireland’s 16.
Jones kicked 2025 off with a bang, scoring a first-round hat-trick against Italy in this year’s Six Nations. He followed it up with another try against his favourite opponents England in Round 3.
Overall, he’s had a hand in 13 tries since the start of 2024 (7 tries, 6 assists), more than double the tally of any other centre from a Six Nations or Rugby Championship side.
Ringrose, on the other hand, is without a direct try involvement in 11 Tests since scoring and assisting against Scotland at the 2023 World Cup.
A menace with the ball in hand, Jones has made the most carries (132) and gained the most metres (693) of any Tier 1 centre over the last 18 months. In fact, he makes over three carries more (9.1) per 80 minutes than Ringrose, who has averaged the third fewest of any Tier 1 centre since the start of 2024 (5.8).
Defensively, Jones’ numbers also dwarf Ringrose’s. He has a higher tackle success rate and wins over three times as many turnovers as his Irish counterpart.
On the flipside, Ringrose is much less prone to giving up possession. He’s conceded just eight turnovers, while Jones has conceded more than every other travelling centre combined.
Our Pick at Outside Centre: Huw Jones
While Ringrose is undeniably a fantastic player in his own right, it’s hard to argue against the data in this case. Given his familiarity at both club and Test level with our inside-centre pick, Tuipulotu, Jones gets the nod in our Lions XV for the series opener.
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Lions 2025 Squad Builder: Picking Our Starting Centres for the First Test Opta Analyst.
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