Liam Wright confident of regaining Wallabies spot after untimely shoulder injury

With a ‘weird’ 2024 behind him, Queensland Reds co-captain Liam Wright is eager to return from a shoulder injury that has sidelined him since July.

Having earnt not only a Wallabies recall but the national team captaincy, Liam Wright wasn’t ready for the devastation of a shoulder injury that ended his 2024 campaign less than an hour into his first Test in four years.

Wright’s bad luck with injuries seemed to have ended when after playing a full Super Rugby Pacific season for the Queensland Reds, he had the honour of becoming the Wallabies 89th Test skipper in his first Test since 2020.

However, 57 minutes into Australia’s 25-16 July 6 win over Wales in Sydney, Wright was forced off after injuring his shoulder, and hasn’t played since.

Liam Wright (right) captained the Wallabies against Wales last year after being selected in the Australian team for the first time since 2020. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

“It’s such a weird one because if someone had told me this time last year that I was going to play a full Super Rugby season for the first time in however long and I was going to get to captain my country, I would have said `sweet I’ll take that, no problems, that’s an awesome year’,” Wright said.

“Then as soon as you get there, the goalposts shift. It hurt probably a bit more last year because you finally get that sniff, and think you’re good enough to be there, and then the opportunity to captain my country as well was really cool, so it’s a cruel one that it gets taken away like that.

“It gets harder the more it happens with injuries. When you first have an injury or the first couple, you think ‘this is just how it works’, and then the more you do it, the more you miss out, the more you want to get back, and the more you see guys moving and training, and the team growing, you want go with it.”

Wright seems unlikely to make his comeback in the Reds’ first game of their 2025 Super Rugby Pacific campaign on Friday night against Moana Pasifika at Suncorp Stadium, with Queensland’s back-row depth ensuring there is no need to gamble on the fitness of the 27-year-old flanker.

Liam Wright (left) and Tate McDermott will again co-captain the Queensland Reds this year. Picture: Supplied

However, Wright isn't far away from a return, having travelled with the Reds to the United Kingdom for their recent pre-season tour.

And the Reds co-captain didn’t play against Bristol or Ulster, his training input increased.

“It’s a matter of not getting too greedy and making sure that we go through the right process and we don’t end up back at square one,” Wright said.

“I’ve got good people in my corner that are keeping me patient … but I’m looking forward to 2025 because I think our team’s growing, we’re trying to evolve areas of our game, and I feel like I can complement that.

“Nothing really changes from last year to this year in terms of if I can get a good Super Rugby season in and my body stays healthy, I feel I can play myself into that Wallabies squad and then from there it’s just doing all you can to earn selection.”

Originally published as Liam Wright confident of regaining Wallabies spot after untimely shoulder injury