June 19, 2026 — 3:30pm
Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and Nick Frost are the big omissions – literally and figuratively – from Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies squad for the July Tests.
Frost has effectively lost his palace to uncapped youngster Lachlan Shaw at the Brumbies and Wallabies, paying the price for his underwhelming form this year. Salakaia-Loto lost out to the Waratahs’ Miles Amatosero, and the two share physical attributes.
But the omissions of Frost and Salakaia-Loto differ because the form of the Reds lock has been strong this year.
Incoming Wallabies coach Les Kiss has a particular role for Salakaia-Loto, particularly when it comes to one of the Reds’ pet plays. When their ruck ball is slow, or they’re under a bit of pressure, the Reds turn repeatedly to Salakaia-Loto to run a hard line off the No.9 to get some momentum.
