James O’Connor opens up on NZ defection, keeping Wallabies dream alive
Twelve years after he wore the Wallabies No. 10 jersey against the British and Irish Lions, James O'Connor is dreaming of playing them again, but is taking the unconventional route to do so.
AT a low-key Italian restaurant in Christchurch last month, James O’Connor sat for dinner with his brothers and Crusaders coach Rob Penney.
“Rob was like, ‘Have you got one more big swing left in you?’ I told him, ‘Yes, I do’,” O’Connor said.
“He didn’t have to do much convincing.”
And so O’Connor’s stunning defection to the Crusaders was sealed.
It was the most random of sequences.
“I had my grandmother’s 83rd birthday in Auckland, the whole family went over, and then we went down to the south island and we split with my parents,” O’Connor said.
“Me and my two brothers and a mate got an RV and were cruising around little towns.
“My manager Shandy [David Shand] had already had conversations with Rob two weeks earlier, but this was completely unexpected. Me and Shandy spent the day with Rob, it was great to get to know him and what the club was about.
“Then Rob called me and said, ‘What are you up to for dinner?’ I said ‘I’m here with my brothers and my mate’, and he asked if they wanted to come.
“I said ‘Yeah, but we’re driving around in this massive RV so we need somewhere to park it’.
“That’s never happened to me in a rugby environment. So we’re all there breaking bread together, we had some funny conversations.”
The Queensland Reds didn’t exercise their option to resign O’Connor for 2025, and late in the year made him a reduced offer.
He declined, inherently aware he was no longer their first-choice playmaker, and became a free agent.
And with a dream to play in the British & Irish Lions series next year, 12 years after he wore the Wallabies No. 10 jersey the last time they toured Australia, O’Connor decided that shifting to the New Zealand powerhouse club gave him the best chance to convince national coach Joe Schmidt he can deliver.
“I’d love to be part of that Lions series again,” O’Connor said.
“I was involved in the last one and it really doesn’t sit well with me, how it all went down (Australia lost the series 2-1).
“I wasn’t happy with how I played. I was a kid, 23 years old, and I knew nothing of rugby. What I knew then is 10 per cent of what I know now.
“I felt like I let a lot of people down. I would love a do-over, but not just for me, I believe I could do a job for the team.
“There’ll be a lot of keyboard warriors that will love to hammer me for this, but I feel like I’ll be the right man for the job.”
But O’Connor, 34, is not arrogant enough to believe he will waltz back in to a gold jersey, and nor is that his top priority.
“I am not going to disrespect New Zealand Rugby and the Crusaders by focusing on the Lions, my focus is on being the best player I can be for the Crusaders, they are one of the most famous rugby clubs in the world and it’s an honour for me to be there,” O’Connor said.
“With a whole season of Super Rugby in a new environment, so people can see what I can do in a different place – if it works out that way, if I do get to play – but what I think can happen at the Crusaders, at this team, I can showcase where I’m at.
“The other element is that the Crusaders have been the most successful Super Rugby team ever, but they didn’t do as well last season. There are quite a few incredible talents left.
“I would love to be part of a rebuild.
“One of the benefits for Australia in a way is that we’re going to have five 10s out there [in Super Rugby] to showcase their skills, let’s see, I am excited.
“I could have easily taken the easy route and gone overseas to France or the US, but I want to test myself.
“It’s going to require the best rugby I’ve played, which is what I’m ready to do, be the best version of myself.
“The first decision was to move from Queensland. I had a deal with them, I caught up with [coach] Les Kiss and the Reds have been great about everything.
“But I could see the writing on the wall at the next level, I wasn’t in Joe’s plans.
“So I could stay – and I really enjoyed the mentoring I did this year and I’ve loved working with Lawson [Creighton] who is at the Waratahs now, Tommy [Lynagh] who is in the Wallabies, and Harry [McLaughlin-Phillips] who has come along and done his thing.
“But I still feel like I’ve got it in me, I didn’t get a chance to show it this year because of injury.
“I’m not saying I’m the best person for the job, but as long as I feel like I can do something that other people can’t, and my body and my mind are willing, I want to give myself the best opportunity.
“Everyone tells you, ‘You’re a long time retired’.”
O’Connor is set to run a backline that includes All Blacks stars Will Jordan and Sevu Reece, and has already started packing for his move to Christchurch next month alongside his wife Bridget and their dog Apollo.
“I have ambitions,” O’Connor said.
“I still want to run a team, but also learning the Crusaders way.
“They’ve got this brotherhood. Once you’re in, you’re in. I’ve already felt this deep connection to everyone I’ve met and who has reached out.
“To go over there, I’m a big believer that you can’t do the same thing over and over again and expect different results. So for me the change was the Reds. I wasn’t in the plans, so I had to challenge myself and get out of my comfort zone.
“It could have been easy to sit back at the Reds, coast, and fade into the background.
“But I’ve got this hunger to do more still.
“I’ve always wanted to test my mettle over there.
“To go to Christchurch, I want to see where their minds are at, where they look for opportunities. Because it’s obviously different to how we see the game.
“It’ll be a good challenge for me to see if I’m up to it, and obviously I think I am.”
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