He might have lost ground to Noah Lolesio in the race to wear the No.10 jersey against the Lions in July, but Tom Lynagh isn’t about to get bogged down by looking too far ahead.

Instead, the 21-year-old recognises that if he can drive the Queensland Reds to greater heights, he will put himself firmly in the mix to take on the Lions in July’s series opener in Brisbane.

“Everyone that plays in Australia has done that (circled the Lions campaign), but I want to take care of the Super Rugby season first. That’s my priority this year. Look after that first and then hopefully the rest will follow,” Lynagh told reporters on Tuesday.

Lynagh might have had a slower festive season than usual, as he enjoyed some downtime thanks to a tonsillectomy in the days leading up to Christmas, but he will have been thrilled by the off-season work done by Reds general manager Sam Cordingley.

Where the Reds had a hard-working tight-five and mobile and skilful back-row over the past two years, the pintsized playmaker now has a forward pack that should be able to go toe-for-toe with the competition’s best after the arrivals of Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and Josh Canham from the Rebels.

It means cheap-shot merchants like Samipeni Finau might think twice before targeting Lynagh. Not that the 21-year-old is complaining, though.

“I got targeted quite a lot and that happens when you’re a little ten,” Lynagh said. “You expect that stuff, and you can’t shy away from it. It’s part of the game. You’ve got to step up and do your job. I’ll try and do the same again this year.”

Lynagh was one of a handful of Reds players who returned for a quick two-day hit out this week before they fly to Sydney on Wednesday for a three-day camp at Olympic Park, which will commence with an administration-heavy day.

Lynagh said his early return to Ballymore was about “ticking the legs over” after being bedridden by his late year surgery.

But there was no complaining about his early return to training.

“We’re all excited,” Lynagh said. “I came in very excited yesterday, it’s probably the most excited I’ve been coming back, just knowing what we managed to do last year and how good the vibes were around the place. It’s a good environment to come back to.

“There was just a few key messages and themes to get around for the year. We started the day out with a meeting and then split off into units and did other meetings and gym sessions, and then finished with a field session. The energy’s high as always – and that’s why we kind of like it around here now.”

While everyone, including the players, eagerly awaits news on Joe Schmidt’s future beyond the Lions, an announcement isn’t likely this week.

“It’s above my pay grade, mate,” said Lynagh, when asked whether Schmidt’s former right-hand man at Ireland Les Kiss would be ready to step up if the New Zealander opts against re-signing through to the World Cup.

“I don’t really know what’s going on.”

More pressing for Lynagh is making a case for a return to the national team.

After debuting in last year’s first Test, Lynagh was plagued by niggly injuries and ultimately wasn’t selected for the Grand Slam tour, with Waratahs playmaker Tane Edmed earning a place in the touring party.

Lynagh said it was a “dream year” to play for the Wallabies in 2024, but acknowledged that he was disappointed to miss the final squad of the year despite a trip to the United Kingdom with Australia A.

“I mean that was sort of a thing I wanted to do last year, get involved in the Spring Tour and travel around the UK and play in different spots,” he said.

“But in the end, I managed to go on a Reds tour and then joined up with Australia afterward and got some good minutes in three games. So, I’m pretty happy I ended up doing that and taking everything that I learned from the Wallaby camps into actual games and playing.”

While Lynagh was cagey around specific feedback Schmidt had given him, the blonde-haired, 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦-faced playmaker admitted he needed to fine-tune his kicking game after failing to reach his own lofty standards.

“Kicking’s been a big part of my game, and they still want me to work on and develop all areas of my kicking,” said Lynagh, who stayed behind in Europe following the Australia A tour to spend time with his international wing brother Louis and father Michael.

“Whether it’s attacking kicking or just clearing a kick, goal kicking especially. That was one of my poor parts in the Super Rugby season I thought, I didn’t goal kick as well as I’d like to.

“[Also] playing at the line and picking the right decisions is a big work-on and something I have been working on and I feel a lot more confident and comfortable doing that. So, they’re the things they’ve demanded from me.”

After this week’s brief Wallabies camp, Lynagh is expected to feature prominently in the Reds’ two pre-season fixtures as Queensland heads to the UK to take on Bristol Bears (February 1) and Ulster (February 8).

Lynagh will compete with Harry McLaughlin-Phillips for the No.10 jersey, while Kiss has added some more youth in the playmaking stocks with Mason Gordon and goal-kicking ace Jude Gibbs arriving at Ballymore.

The two-week tour will be a break from tradition ahead of the Super Rugby season, but Kiss is hoping the opportunity to take on the English premiership leaders, who provide one of the toughest defensive challenges in club rugby, as well as his former Irish side will have the Reds primed for a season where there is plenty of expectation.

“We’re all pretty excited,” Lynagh said. “Some of the boys haven’t been over there or played over there not too often.

“It’s a good time of year to go over there, the weather should be lovely – it’s nice and cold and windy.

“Bristol and Ulster are both tough games. They’re both great teams. Bristol’s up at the top end of the premiership, and Bristol’s a great place to play too. It’s a great stadium, great field. Different conditions to what we’d normally play down here so the boys will take a lot from it and learn a lot from it but it’ll be good to head back up there again.

“They play a pretty fast game of rugby and very attacking. I’ve been watching them for quite a few years, and they’ve always been like that. They (often) don’t kick inside their own 22, which is pretty brave, but they do it well and they get rewarded for it. So, we can take something from that too, just mixing it up a bit and keeping teams guessing.”