Payto and Panda: Pulver's Super call Australia's Super Rugby sides will be severely tested in June, after the ARU announced a Wallabies camp prior to their series against the British & Irish Lions. ARU CEO Bill Pulver. ARU chief executive Bill Pulver will make the final call on the availability of Australia's top 25 Super Rugby players for two crucial local derbies that will be played after the Wallabies have gone into camp to prepare for the Lions. The Wallabies squad will be pulled into camp on June 2. The Brumbies host the Rebels on June 7, while the Waratahs travel to Perth to play the Force on June 9, and NSW's forward pack in particular is set to be decimated. "If those Super Rugby matches have significant bearing on the competition standings, and finals spots are at stake, the ARU will take that under serious consideration," Pulver said. The issue of availability will be discussed by the ARU's high-performance unit, headed by Anthony Eddie, and also Wallabies coach Robbie Deans. But we're reliably informed Pulver will have the last word. Given Pulver has declared that the Wallabies' interests will take precedence, the Super franchises are hardly confident of seeing any of their biggest names for those games. THERE is bound to be some emotion at tonight's Waratahs v Rebels match. Schoolmates of Liam Knight, the teenager who survived a metal rod piercing his skull during an attack at a party, are attending in large numbers. The popular student at St Pius X in Chatswood is recovering well from the horrific attack. He is developing speech, recognition and motor skills after waking from a coma. There is a link on the field as well. Waratahs flanker Michael Hooper and Rebels lock Luke Jones are close friends who have known each other since Year 7 at St Pius. Hooper will be especially keen to put in an eye-catching performance given that in three months the Lions series begins and the openside flanker role will be a hotly contested position. Captaincy contender David Pocock and Reds tyro Liam Gill are vying with Hooper to start the first Test. "All the No.7s are pretty keen to get that jersey," Hooper said. We all have different styles. It's about honing them this year until we get to that set-up. It's good coming up against them. I came up against Gilly last weekend and I'm up against Poey in two weeks. Israel Folau lines up a kick during the Waratahs Captain's Run at the Sydney Football Stadium. THE joke around Waratahs headquarters is that Israel Folau will go for a fourth professional code by signing for Sydney FC next year. Cue laughter. Based on the evidence of the NSW star recruit's run yesterday at the Allianz Stadium, a football switch is not as wacky a suggestion as Folau playing in the AFL or anything like that. (What's that? He played in the AFL, you say?) After the session finished, Izzy popped a ball on to a tee on the sideline and thumped a kick that sailed impressively towards the sticks. The ball clanged into an upright but it was a sweet strike, not unlike a goalkick. Striker perhaps? IF you want a snapshot of Michael Cheika's stubborn character, what happened after Folau's kick gives a great insight. Goaded into having a kick from the sideline as well, Cheika went old-school with a toe-poke, Mal Meninga-style. It went left - much to his team's amusement. But as his players disappeared up the tunnel, Cheika stayed on the field and had another four toe-poke attempts until he hit one he was happy with. STILL on kicking, former Wallaby Matt Burke showed he's still got the skills this week after returning to the NSW staff as a kicking coach. Leading off in a post-training crossbar challenge - where the aim is to kick a ball and land it on the crossbar - Burke nailed it first go from 40 out. The players were suitably impressed. THERE is even more pain to come for the hapless Western Force, with one of their most potent attacking weapons, Alfie Mafi, set to join Japanese side Honda after this season. Mafi was in the top 20 players in the competition for most runs and most run metres last season, and has started 2013 in impressive fashion. And Rebels lock Hugh Pyle is believed to be close to signing with the Brumbies for 2014. WILL Genia doesn't remember too much about the 2001 Lions tour to Australia. "My only memories of that tour was the supporters from the Lions that came over, the atmosphere, and also thinking why were they playing rugby at The Gabba - because I was a big cricket nut back then," Genia said. Given that The Gabba was less than half full for Australia's Twenty20 match against West Indies two weeks ago, he might wonder why they still play cricket there.