It's no secret that the Waratahs will head into Saturday's clash with the British and Irish Lions as heavy underdogs - but Dan McKellar has taken a typically pragmatic approach to the forthcoming fixture - demanding quality minutes from the men in sky blue.
Consistency hindered the Waratahs for much of the 2025 season, and with McKellar's side - alongside the Brumbies - most affected in regards to Wallaby representation, the sides face the toughest assignments against the touring outfit.
Watch every game of the 2025 British & Irish Lions Tour live and on-demand via Stan Sport.
However, several late inclusions in the form of Taniela Tupou, Andrew Kellaway, Tane Edmed and Darby Lancaster have provided some much-needed international experience, as will the debut of 31-Test Wallaby Matt Philip.
McKellar will not only be backing those players to perform, but the wider squad as well - revealing the side has had a near perfect couple of weeks training for the match.
"Everyone wants to play in it, like every week," McKellar told reporters on Thursday.
"The boys all want to be involved on game day. [We had] some tough decisions, as always, but comfortable with the 23 that we've got.
"Obviously, 'Nela at scrum time and Kells' experience on both sides of the ball, it's invaluable. We've been asking a lot about 'Nela this season, of course.
"Great chance for him to really stamp his case for Wallabies selection for the Test series. I think Joe [Schmidt] would have given him plenty of notice in terms of what the plan was and let him know that he was playing in this game, and yeah, it's a good hit out for him."
Historically, the Waratahs have had more success against the Lions than any of the Australian provincial sides, defeating their fabled opponents on four occasions, but it has been a long time between drinks, with 1959 being the last time the sky blue jersey prevailed.
"They're obviously a quality side, and as I've said to the players all week, it's a Test match," McKellar admitted.
"We're not playing a Super Rugby game or anything else. We're playing a high-quality Test team. They've got two arms and two legs, and you've just got to put them under pressure.
"I think what both the Force and the Reds have done is they've done that. Being able to do it and sustain it for long periods of time is the challenge. They bring on eight high-quality test players off the bench.
"It's a fair challenge. But as has been proven in the past, it's certainly doable. You've just got to be very good."
Despite the scorelines, the Force and Reds did challenge the Lions consistently in one key area - the scrum. It is something that several Australian sides have taken notice of, not just the Wallabies.
"Dominant set-piece is a big part of what we do," McKellar said.
"Ideally, we get some dominance in and around scrum time. Off the back of that, you get field position, you win the penalty count, and your game just flows from there.
"There's going to be excitement. There's going to be enthusiasm."
Off the back of the Lions second half dominance, McKellar is also turning significant attention to the utilisation of his bench - especially with a debutant hungry to get out on the field in a sky blue jersey.
"[Matt Philip] been great," McKellar admitted.
"He's made an impression and earned the respect of the group really quickly. I know that was important to Matty. He didn't want to come in here and be a dominant voice.
"He wanted to make sure that he led through his actions and earned respect through his actions. He's done that.
"It's nice for Matty to finally make his debut for the NSW Waratahs. He's a proud NSW man and very passionate about this team.
"It'll be no different from the starters or the guys coming off the bench. What we've got to back that enthusiasm up with is with real accuracy."
McKellar admitted that more than anything, he wants a solid performance from his side, even despite the context of the game in his time as a coach.
"They're a good side. I'm not one way or the other [about the scoreline], to be honest," McKellar added.
"I thought last night [vs. the Reds], up until half-time, it was a real contest. [Alex] Mitchell and Finn Smith off the bench. [Ellis] Genge brought real tempo and real physicality.
"I think the scorelines are the scorelines. We're up against a good side.
"We want to be out there and perform well. Try and put the opposition under pressure and get our game going… things that we've been working really hard on over the last month since Super Rugby finished for us.
"I want to see a transfer of that and put a performance in that we can hang our hat on. Not just be happy about playing the Lions. We want to challenge them and do the Wallabies a few favours.
"It's a special event against some of the best players in the world. Not a lot of coaches and players are fortunate enough to have it fall within their career span, being only every 12 years.
"So, you've got to be really grateful for that and be excited by it.
"Now, we've got to go out there and perform and make sure that we're excited about the performance that we deliver."
