Wallabies lock Will Skelton is adamant he will be fit for the second British & Irish Lions match in Melbourne.
Skelton will watch Saturday’s opening match in Brisbane from the sidelines as he continues to deal with a calf niggle.
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It’s the same injury that kept the La Rochelle second-rower out of the win over Fiji last fortnight.
In a big boost for the hosts, Skelton remains confident he will be available for selection for the match at the MCG.
“The body's feeling really good,” he said. “The calf's holding up well.”
“We've got one more big session today with ‘Bobby V’ [Rob Valetini] and Langi Gleeson. Hopefully we get through that and be available next week.”
Skelton is joined on the sidelines by Valetini (calf) and Gleeson (cork), leaving rookie Nick Champion de Crespigny to start at blindside flanker on his debut.
“They were right on the edge, to be honest,” coach Joe Schmidt said on Thursday.
“If it was the last game of the series, they would have been in the mix. We just felt it was the most judicious decision at the time.”
Skelton was feeling the love around Brisbane as a wave of Lions and Wallabies fans descend on a sold-out Suncorp Stadium.
“It's really exciting. Even us not being involved, we're fully invested in what's going to happen tonight and hopefully we can get a result,” he added.
“The support's been unreal. Especially when you get to come to events like this where you get to see the kids, the grassroots, everyone cheering for the Wallabies, giving a bit of sticks to the Lions boys. They've got a few Lions boys here too.
“The town's been hectic. They've got so many fans here who've flown over.
“It's going to be a special game tonight.”
