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Sydney - Wallabies skipper James Horwill is looking forward to the "series of a lifetime" against the British and Irish Lions after signing an extension to his deal with the Australia Rugby Union (ARU) until 2015 on Monday.
The 27-year-old lock, who missed the last international season through injury, had already extended his deal with the Reds and was therefore unlikely to join fellow Wallabies Drew Mitchell and Digby Ioane in heading to France.
Horwill will be one of the first names on the team sheet for the Lions clashes and is likely to lead his country into the highly-anticipated series.
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"It's coming up quickly now and you can really feel that in the intensity it has brought to Super Rugby this year, especially in the derby games," he said in a news release.
"The competition just to make the squad is fierce, which is exactly as it should be.
"It bodes well for what is going to be the series of a lifetime, both for the test players but also those players who feature against the Lions in the tour matches.
"You just have to look at the power in the touring squad they have named to see that."
Horwill led Queensland to the 2011 Super Rugby title and then captained Australia for the first time when the Wallabies clinched the Tri-Nations title for the first time in a decade with a 25-20 win over the All Blacks.
Handed the captaincy on a permanent basis in preference to Rocky Elsom in a surprise move on the eve of the 2011 World Cup, Horwill led Australia to third place in New Zealand.
