Speaking at Suncorp Stadium to mark the 50-day countdown to the marquee event, Schmidt said he planned to get to Perth for a training hub, given the Western Force’s season has finished, but a squad would likely not be named until Australia’s finals teams were out of action.

As for McDermott, he declared the halfback was “a really important cog in the wheel for the Reds and for the Wallabies”, as the 26-year-old prepares to tussle with Jake Gordon and Nic White for the job against the Lions.

“For Tate, I think that stability allows him to continue some combinations that certainly help when the pressure comes on, when people know where people are going to be and how to find them when they don’t have a lot of time and space to get that pass away,” Schmidt said.

“If Tate went on sabbatical we weren’t letting him go for long anyway, so that is one bonus about sabbaticals – we know they’re coming back, and their long-term future is committed.

“But to have them continuously I think is a huge advantage, it just allows them to build not only within their Super team, but to be at Wallabies gatherings … we’re looking to assemble on June 22, and some guys who are overseas might not be back in time.”