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Reformed bad boy to lead Queensland Reds as interim captain
By AAP
James O'Connor will serve as the Queensland Reds' interim captain this Super Rugby AU season in the latest endorsement of the reformed Wallabies bad boy.
The playmaker received a raucous round of applause from teammates when the appointment was announced internally after training on Friday.
The Reds are expected to confirm 30-year-old O'Connor's appointment on Sunday, in the lead-up to Friday's season opener against the NSW Waratahs in Brisbane.
He will stand in for injured skipper Liam Wright, who is hopeful of returning for finals but will miss the bulk of the 10-week home and away season with an ankle injury.
It continues a dramatic rise from rugby oblivion for O'Connor, who debuted for the Wallabies as an 18-year-old but twice left Super Rugby for Europe amid drug and alcohol-related mishaps.
Two nights in a Paris jail cell in 2017 proved the line in the sand for the Gold Coast product, who sought a return to Australia and has since re-established himself with the Wallabies and proved his leadership credentials under disciplinarian Reds coach Brad Thorn.
Former All Blacks forward Thorn watched in begrudging admiration as then-teenager O'Connor calmly slotted a conversion of his own try after the siren to beat New Zealand in Hong Kong 11 years ago.
He no sooner had his Rugby Australia contract torn up, while another brief stint with the Reds in 2015 ended in acrimony.
But, six years on, O'Connor will lead a young side boasting a smattering of emerging Wallabies expected to push for a title.
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Latest Comments
I wonder how Leinster will use Jordie. I would rate the current centres there above him, and the rest of the backline is strong. Pity he did not go out to Connacht, or up to Ulster....both would really benefit from a player of his class.
Go to commentsI am saddened that this is how Brendan Mullin has ended up. I met him in the 70's as a 16 year old , when attending a trial for an Irish Schools age group sevens team. I was coaching in Ulster at the time, and we had a player in contention.
On the way back up to Belfast, he was on the train for part of the way out of Dublin, and I got to know him a bit. He told me was born in Jerusalem, lived some years there. He was now being educated at the rugby powerhouse, Blackrock College. He made that team, as did my player. His immense talent was clear at that age.
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