I had a great chat with Liam Wright this week!
After recovering from a minor foot injury, he is set to make his return to play in the NRC for Queensland Country this Saturday against Fiji! It’s do or die for both teams, so this game will be a cracker.
We caught up about his career so far, including playing with the Reds, Queensland Country and how good it felt to finally “earn” his first Wallabies cap against New Zealand this year. (Liam almost got an official cap in 2017, before he first signed with the Reds in 2018.)
I hope you enjoy reading our chat! (And don’t forget, Queensland Country’s game against the Fiji Drua will be streamed online at 1pm this Saturday! Don’t miss it!)
Congrats to your team for the win over the weekend! You didn’t play that game though. Were you ok, or were you just being rested?
Yeah. When I was in Wallabies camp, I snapped some ligaments in my left big toe. So I’ve just sort of been rehabbing that with the team here. At the time, we could push through it and just strap it up really heavily, but it’s been good to have a chance during the NRC to just fix it up and make sure it’s right and that there’s no long term issues. So I’ve been running water for them for the last few weeks and it’s been good. So it’s awesome to still be involved with the team, but I’m back now and ready to go.
How much are you looking forward to the game this weekend against Fiji?
I can’t wait! The Fiji trips always really good. It’s a lot of fun and just getting over to a different environment is good too. They just absolutely love their rugby. I was there last year, but I got injured, luckily I got to go as a coach consultant. We won there the year before, when I was playing. I’m looking forward to it. It should be a big one too, considering whoever wins makes the finals, whoever loses is out, so I’m really excited to go back.
It’s been a big year for you with the Reds. How do you feel looking back on the 2019 Super Rugby season?
I was really pleased with it. We didn’t get the wins we wanted, but we all felt as a team that we took a step forward and we were better in a lot of aspects then the year before. So we definitely want to convert that into wins this season - that’s going to be our main goal. Just simplifying our plan and making sure we execute better, especially in the high pressure moments which we probably didn’t this year. And personally, I was really happy just to get a lot of game time. I was lucky enough to start every game, so I just really enjoyed playing footy and adapting each week and getting used to what it’s like to be out there. So I had a ball this year.
In 2017, you were almost a Wallaby before you were a Red. How did it feel finally earning your Wallabies cap in August this year?
Yeah it was crazy. I got picked straight out of NRC in 2017 to go on that Wallabies tour. I probably felt a bit out of my depth back then. It just felt a bit out of the blue and a bit almost like I hadn’t fully earned it. I felt like I skipped a few steps there. So it was awesome this year to really feel like I deserved to be a part of the camps. I was happy with the way I was going in training and Cheik rewarded me with two games this year. It was awesome. My family was able to come to both of them, so to play with them there was just great. I loved every minute of it.
What’s been a highlight of being a part of the Wallabies training camp this year?
Well, the highlight obviously has to be debuting. I remember when I found out, I didn’t have any warning before, it was so surreal. I sort of blacked out for a few moments, I remember all the boys getting around me… I probably wrote myself off that week. If I was going to play any game, I didn’t think it wasn’t going to be that week. It was the best thing ever. I wasn’t expecting it, even a little bit, so it was just awesome.
And just the training. That’s one thing I learned, it’s not that they get up and play hard each week, they train hard all the time as well to improve themselves. I think that’s the biggest take-away point. It’s not just about making through the week to get to the game, it’s about making those training sessions count, all those little extras you do to get better on the park. So that was really cool to learn off guys like Pocock and Hoops.
What age did you start playing rugby? And what drew you to the game?
I’ve played rugby since I was around five or six. Under sixes was I think my first year. I got into the game through my parents really. My family are from South Africa originally and as you know it’s just rugby mad over there. Dad played when he was younger, all mums brothers played, and they love watching it. Mum watches it more than most girls I know. They froth over it so it was always going to happen, me playing rugby.
Do you mind if we look ahead to the Reds 2020 season. What would your message be for Reds fans listening now?
Well, the message last year was to believe and I think we definitely showed a lot of fight, a lot of spirit and that there’s good things to come. You can see from the off-field department they’ve been working hard to sign a lot of young talent, keeping them at Ballymore for the next few years, so we’ve really got something to build on. I just think we’re going to go a step ahead. We’ve got that work ethic instilled in us, I think we’ve shown that in a lot of games this year, we’re still there in the 80th minute, thanks to our strength and conditioning program. Again, in the pre-season it’s going to be really, really hard, but it keeps us around in those games and against those teams that are gonna make you work for it right to the end.
We want to become a bit smarter this year. We missed out on a few games by just a few crucial plays and key moments. So that’s probably going to be the difference this year, at least we like to think so. We think we'll have the same fight and the same enthusiasm every game but we’re gonna have the smarts about us and be able to close out those tight ones.
That’s awesome. I’m super excited about next years Reds season too. I’m also excited about the NRC games happening this weekend. All the best in Fiji on Saturday!
Thanks Tommy! Can’t wait. Go Country!
Bonus Reds Rugby Rules Section
I asked Liam to explain “pilfering”, to help rugby fans (like my mum) that enjoy watching the game, but don’t always understand the rules.
Can you explain “pilfering” in layman’s terms?
Yeah I’ll try! Pilfering - or “jackling” or stealing the ball, is essentially… when your defending, and when you go into a ruck and trying to take the ball from them, legally. There’s a fair few rules around it, like staying on your feet, not putting your hands on the ground, but essentially the gist of it is, you’re trying to get in, before their attacking guys can get in and come out with the ball - so that you regain possession for your team.
Queensland Country play Fiji on Saturday at 1pm
Brisbane City also have their final round game against the Melbourne Rising, RIGHT HERE at Easts Rugby Club at 3pm!
