Bell returns from Ulster sabbatical with World Cup hunger as Wallabies target Ireland opener

Angus Bell has returned from a six-month stint at Ulster determined to help the Wallabies reverse their fortunes, with coach Joe Schmidt delivering clear instructions ahead of Saturday week’s Test against Ireland at a sold-out Allianz Stadium in Sydney.

The NSW Waratahs loosehead, who helped Ulster reach last month’s European Challenge Cup final, will face eight of his former Belfast teammates when Andy Farrell’s 36-player touring squad arrives in Australia. Bell described those players as “friends for life” but left no doubt the goodwill ends at kick-off.

“Joe’s mentioned how we’ve got to win these games coming up,” Bell said. “We’ve got to win against Ireland, we’ve got to win against France, and we’ve got to beat the Italians.”

Schmidt’s urgency is rooted in a difficult 2025 campaign that ended with Australia becoming the first Wallabies side to go winless across a four-Test European tour. With a home Rugby World Cup arriving in 2027, the pressure to build momentum is mounting.

Bell, 50 caps to his name at 25, said the Ulster experience was exactly the reset he needed. “As a 25-year-old, it was refreshing, something that I needed to do to experience something different and I feel like I’ve come back a better rugby player,” he said. “There’s definitely heaps of learnings and it’s going to be interesting going up against them.”

One of the more welcome developments for Bell ahead of the July series is the return from retirement of loosehead James Slipper, Australia’s most-capped player with 151 Test appearances. Bell credited Slipper as a formative influence on his career.

“Slips was one of my mentors growing up. From when I was first in the squad at 19, he looked after me and taught me what I know,” Bell said. “If there’s ever troubles or we’re trying to fix something within the forward pack, we’ve always looked to Slips to help us around those issues.”

Bell added that he hopes Slipper’s return extends beyond the three July Tests and into the World Cup cycle. “Now we’ve just got to try and coerce him to stay till next year,” he said.