James O’Connor is the experienced general the Wallabies need to face the Lions | Angus Fontaine
Coach Joe Schmidt will hope the veteran fly-half can re-enter the fray and calm the mild panic brought on by Noah Lolesio’s season-ending injury
Past masters or young guns? Faced with the biggest crossroads of his Wallabies coaching career, Joe Schmidt has had a bet each way, recalling 35-year-old fly-half James O’Connor from exile to lead a young Wallabies attack in their bid to conjure an upset victory over the British & Irish Lions in the series kicking off on 19 July in Brisbane.
The selection of O’Connor – 12 years after he was blooded against the Lions in 2013 and 1,064 days since his last international – was the headline selection in the 36-man squad. The 2025 Wallabies join 191 men over 126 years to suit up against the best from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
But the biggest riddle was who would orchestrate an ambush for the gold No 10 jersey.
Australia’s lack of depth in the halves was badly exposed last week when incumbent fly-half Noah Lolesio suffered a neck injury in the torrid Test victory over Fiji. Despite erratic performances across 29 Tests, the Brumbies pivot was expected to start against the Lions. His late scratching left a rawboned young side, and their coach, without a playmaker.
Even before Lolesio’s injury in last weekend’s frantic 21-19 win in Newcastle, there had been widespread calls to recall an experienced general to steer the ship against the Lions. How else would the Wallabies outwit Scottish ace Finn Russell and livewire halfback Jamison Gibson-Park?
Enter O’Connor. Having last donned the gold jersey in 2022, the former boy wonder had been plying his trade overseas, before crossing the ditch to join the Crusaders in Super Rugby. There, as an impact player off the bench, he became a key to their 2025 title. Now, he joins teammate James Slipper in taking on the Lions in successive campaigns.
The Gold Coast-born maverick has a rollercoaster CV: he was the youngest-ever Super Rugby debutant in 2008, at 17 years old. Then he was capped as the second-youngest Wallaby, debuting against Italy in 2009 for the first of his 64 Tests. Along the way there were myriad controversies, on and off the field, but never a retirement.
O’Connor was one of two changes to the squad who beat Fiji, with Queensland lock Josh Canham also added. Schmidt has a week to decide whether “JOC” is the man to outwit the superb Lions halves Russell and Gibson-Park, or if 16-Test bench utility Ben Donaldson or three-Test rookie Tom Lynagh is thrown the keys.
Schmidt had invested heavily in Lolesio. The 25-year-old was the starting pivot in 12 of the coach’s 14 Tests in charge. And despite signing to play 2025-26 in Japan, Schmidt softened his stance on only picking players committed to the local game to start Lolesio against Fiji. All that time, effort and loyalty went up in smoke with Lolesio’s sad, season-ending injury last Saturday.
It sent mild panic through Wallabies ranks. Fans had welcomed Schmidt’s new wave – 19 debutants in 2024 – but victory mattered more. They’d seen seasoned warriors scrapped for nowt when Eddie Jones left maestro fly-halves Quade Cooper and Bernard Foley at home for the 2023 World Cup to throw the callow Carter Gordon into the fire without a mentor.
With the rugby world watching closely, the men in gold cannot afford to be humiliated in this once-every-12 years series. They have rebuilt their reputation under Schmidt but a walloping would be perilous. With 500,000 tickets sold and a home World Cup coming fast in 2027, Australian rugby needs a strong showing to woo back fans lost to the NRL, AFL and A-Leagues.
Rarely has a Wallabies victory been greeted by such stressed press as the win over Fiji. Only captain Harry Wilson’s last-gasp try – and a TMO decision to scrub one of Fiji’s – saved Australia’s blushes against the world No 9. But the way Schmidt’s men frittered a strong 14-0 start to let the Fijians run riot and almost steal it didn’t bode well for the Lions litmus test
“We need to improve our accuracy and cohesion,” Schmidt said on Friday.
If selected, Lynagh will be the first Wallaby to follow in his father’s footsteps in playing the Lions, with Michael having worn the gold against the 1989 tourists. But it’s the return of O’Connor that puts a joker in the pack and injects fresh hope for local fans. Against a powerful Lions side that has beaten all four Australian state sides, a wildcard like him – starting or off the bench – might be key to unlocking the side’s spluttering attack.