2019 and Beyond: A "Super" Conversation with Lori Cramer

2019 has been an awesome year for Lori Cramer. She helped lead the Queensland Womens XV team to the Super W grand final, then went on to represent Australia in all four Wallaroos fixtures. To top it off, she captained the team that won the Aon Sevens series (UQ).

The Queensland Reds are now hard at work doing pre-season training (both the mens and the womens teams). Right after her on-field training session at Ballymore, I caught with Lori to catch up on the year that’s been and ask about 2020!

This is my second interview with Lori, you can check out the first here. 

I hope you’re just as excited aabout Super W coming up as I am!

Hey Lori,

Thanks for taking time to catch up! How’d training go tonight? 

Training was pretty good tonight. The bigger squad just got cut, so we’re just getting down to the pointy end, so everyone’s obviously working hard and trying to get into the team. So yeah. Training was good, but people are still fighting for those last few positions.

What have you and the team been working on in particular?

Just the basics for now, because we’ve got a bit of a new group together. We’re just working on our shape, trying to get some structure. Nothing too specific, just general sort of stuff, skills, ball security, that sort of stuff.

It’s been a great year for you personally and also for women’s rugby in general. What’s been the main highlight of your playing career this year?

Probably my second [Wallaroos] test down in Sydney, when I had to take that first kick, the first penalty. I hadn’t scored any points yet, because I stuffed up all of my kicks in the game before. That was my one job... but the second game, I got the start, I had a bit of a pep-talk... so yeah probably making that first kick. I was so nervous, but I got it.

Where were you when you heard the news that you’d made the Wallaroos squad?

I’m pretty sure I was at home. At the time, my grandma was really sick in hospital, so I drove straight to the hospital and told her that I’d made the squad and that I was going to camp, so that was pretty cool.

What’s been the greatest thing about being a Wallaroo this year?

Probably having those moments when you see a lot of people wearing Wallaroos stuff, as opposed to like, the Wallabies, or just a random yellow shirt. So seeing a lot of young girls wearing our gear and you know, knowing your name, that was a bit of a highlight.

We may or may not be wearing kicking tees in this picture, and no it wasn't my idea

Congrats to you and the Uni squad on the Aon Sevens series win in September! How did you feel after the competition was over?

Thank you! How did I feel? I was pretty tired to be honest. (Laughs). Nah it was unreal. That was my first Sevens series in Australia. I’ve always been in Japan playing Sevens, so that fact that we won it was crazy, the fact that I was captain was crazy, it was all really cool. I loved it and I can’t wait to be a part of it next year as well.

You know, going from 15s to 7s is always a bit of a shock at the first training... your looking at the ruck and you’re counting players and you realise you have to run again... but yeah...it’s good fun.

I’m already pretty excited that Super W is coming up next year! What would your message to Queensland rugby supporters be, ahead of the 2020 season?

Hmmm... my message. Get around us at our games! I know it actually makes a huge difference having a bit of a crowd around us at our games. We’re building and there’s some special things happening here. So yeah my message would be get around rugby. As a rugby community, at a grassroots level and a state level and an international level, when we have games at Ballymore, or elsewhere, or at Suncorp, just get around to the games. Yeah!

Awesome. I can’t wait until kick off. Thanks again for taking time to catch up!

Any time Tom! Thank you!

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Everything’s All Good with Alana Elisaia

It’s been a big year for women’s rugby in Australia. Super W has taken off once again and the Wallaroo’s have had some awesome games, in Australia as well as New Zealand.

And in amongst it all, one of the rising stars in the sport is Alana Elisaia! After a stellar season with the Queensland Women’s XV (soon to be rebranded the Women’s Reds), she was selected and capped as a Wallaroo! The year has been almost non-stop for her, with the Aon Uni Sevens series and now the Australian Development Squad tour taking place in Fiji in just over a week. In the midst of it all, it seems like her dads advice that she shared in our last interview has been steering her well!

A big thanks to Alana for taking time to chat. Even after time spent on the world stage, she is still humble and as nice as ever to talk to. It looks like she has a great career ahead of her!

Hey Alana, great to catch up again. 2019 has been big for you! How would you sum up the year so far, in a few words?

Exciting and full on. Super W was really fun and then getting into the Wallaroos was pretty unexpected, but was really cool.

How are you feeling after the AON Sevens round in Canberra the other week?

Um… relieved that it’s over! (Laughs) no… Sevens is always hard. But I’m feeling good. Gutted that we didn’t take it out, but we played a really good tournament. So, content really.

On your Instagram page, you said that you are “proud, regardless.” Does that sum up how you feel about your teams Super W season earlier this year?

Yep. I think, regardless of our score in the grand final. We were such a tight knit team that we became a family. So we left everything out on the field and there was nothing else that we can do. And the score didn’t reflect on our team.

I was really proud of the whole team. I’m looking forward to next years Super W season already!

Me too actually! We just started pre-season. It’s cool to see there’s a lot of new faces.

Can you tell me more about what it was like playing with the Wallaroos this year?

Um... I didn’t find it as nerve racking as what I thought it would be. I thought it would be really overwhelming. But the group of girls that I went with were really supportive it and made it so much easier. Especially playing at Eden Park, I thought that would be scary. But it was exciting I guess.

During our last interview, you said your Dads advice to “relax and have fun” was really helpful. Did that advice still apply while playing for the Wallaroos?

Yep. I think I had to. Because if I got too worked up, I would have just crumbled. But I just took each stride at a time and had heaps of fun. Whatever time I had on the field, I just did what I could and enjoyed it. Because it doesn’t come very often.

What was your number 1 highlight from your experience playing with the Wallaroos this year?

Um.. Definitely getting to put on the green and gold jersey. And then getting to play was even more special I guess.

What will the next few months look like?

So we’ve started pre-season for Super W and we’ve got the Aussie development tour so I’m still training for that. That kind of overlapped with Aon and then Aon overlapped with Wallaroo’s and then Wallaroo’s overlapped with Super W… we’ll get a break during Christmas for like a week… so full on.

What would your message be to Queensland Rugby fans, ahead of next years Super W season?

I think it would be nice to have people get around the girls a lot more. We had a lot of support last year, but I think next year will be a big year considering we got rebranded as just “Reds”. So we’re one big family now. Hopefully we’ll get more people around us!

Thanks Alana for taking time out to chat!

That’s ok! Thank you for having me!

The Reds (and the Wallabies) Can't Go Wrong With Liam Wright

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!

A Conversation with Sefa Naivalu

I enjoyed catching up with Sefa Naivalu earlier this week, just before his team training with Brisbane City. I hope you enjoy reading our interview as much as I enjoyed chatting!

Hi Sefa, thanks for making time this afternoon to catch up.

How are you enjoying this years NRC season?

Yeah really good. I enjoy every moment here with the Reds and Brisbane City. Just a good group, good bunch of blokes

Sometimes when I finish training, when I come home, I can’t wait to come back to training. Just the environment that I enjoy the most. I’ve enjoyed every moment with the Reds. 

What’s been a highlight of being based at Ballymore this year?

Like I said before, with a great group, you enjoy your footy. Also, being at Ballymore, with the history that the Reds have and representing Queensland as a State, it’s amazing to be part of it.

When you moved from Fiji to Australia in 2014, what was the biggest change you had to get used to?

For me it was adjusting to the lifestyle in Australia, especially the weather down in Melbourne. It’s quite cold and freezing. Yeah, just adjusting to the lifestyle.

What’s some advice you would give to young players who want to play rugby professionally, both boys and girls?

My advice would be, just working hard, taking opportunities that come your way and making sacrifices.

I’ve made sacrifices, I’ve worked hard to get here where I am today. I’m still doing the same, I’m still working hard and making sacrifices I can for my family.

You’ve had to bounce back from injuries a few times in your career. What’s something you learnt during your recovery process?

Yeah. When I got injured it was mostly negative things that would came up in my head. The most important thing that helped me bounce back is my motivation. My Mum told me “I know you will make it to your rugby career, but don’t forget your younger brother and sister”.

I broke my tibia in 2015 and I was out for nearly a year, 11 months. Not playing, just doing rehab and training. Just changing my mindset, being positive all the time, instead of putting negative thoughts in your head.

That’s great advice. Thanks Sefa for taking time to chat. All the best in Perth this weekend!

Thanks Tom! Always good to see you around.

This weekend, Brisbane City play the Force over in Perth, while Queensland Country are playing NSW Country at Bond on Sunday at 3pm!

Jock Campbell - One to Watch in City Versus Country Derby!

Big week for Reds fans following the NRC. It’s time for the annual Brisbane City versus Queensland Country game! They call it the “Andy Purcell” cup round and this year, they’ve chosen to host the game in Gladstone! Of course… the game will be broadcast on www.rugby.com.au. But before the game… make sure you read my interview with a true “Country” boy and Reds star, Jock Campbell! 

Hi Jock, so with the Country versus City grudge match this weekend… Has there been a little bit of banter between the two teams around Ballymore this week?

Jock is loving being based at Ballymore full-time.

Absolutely. Always is. [City head coach] Jimmy Mackay’s leading it, he loves a bit of banter. Also Fraser. No malice, but all laughter. It’s fun.

There’s a bit of a coaching divide, cos obviously Crapper and Jim are with City, Seiby, Toddy are Country. Actually not Toddy. He stays cool, but with the others, it’s fun.

2019 has been a big year for you. You’ve debuted for the Reds and even scored a couple of tries. What have some of the highlights been for 2019 so far?

Obviously debuting was pretty special, overseas in Pretoria. It was a pretty awesome atmosphere. But the whole year in general has been awesome. Just being here every day and being around the boys, it’s a really good group. I really enjoyed travelling and the away games, you get to play in South Africa, New Zealand… when you take a step back and think of that, it’s pretty cool.

Congrats to you and the UQ side on winning the Hospital Cup this year! That’s 4 out of 4 finals appearances and two championships. What do you love most about playing for UQ?

Yeah, I’ve played 5 or 6 years there. I’ve learnt a lot, but it’s just fun. I used to play footy at school for fun, I never expected anything like that. I know a lot of people there, it’s just comfortable playing around them…

2 out of 4 for the grand final, it’s awesome to be a part of such a great team. There are great coaching staff too. I owe a lot to the staff there, they’ve taught me a lot. And to beat the Brothers boys was sweet, I’ve always said I can’t go 1 from 4. So 2 from 4 was inevitable.

Can you tell us about your rugby journey and how you ended up playing for Queensland?

I grew up in a country town, Inverell. I played mostly Rugby League, a bit of Union.. but League is huge in Country New South Wales. Then I went to boarding school on the Gold Coast at TSS and they only play Rugby Union there, so I played that for five years. I just love footy and cricket, I just played lots of sport.

Then I moved to Brisbane for Uni, I lived at Kings, so I played for Uni cos it was around the corner. I played for them for 3 years, then made the NRC, played a couple of years of NRC and now I’m here. So it was a bit of a longer journey than most, but I wouldn’t change it. I really enjoyed my footy all the way through. So that’s sort of my journey.

What have you loved most about being based at Ballymore full-time and playing for the Reds?

Just playing full-time, it’s cool I guess. To say it’s your job just to come in and train, where as before you did uni and work… I’d say it’s just cool. To come to Ballymore, I haven’t experienced anywhere else, but yeah it’s awesome. The gym’s a bit old school (they’re gonna knock it down soon), but I really enjoy everything here.

[It was at this moment Jim Mackay walked across to say hi. So Jock invited him into the interview.]

[Jim:] I was just going to say… big game this week Tom, but he’s a real danger man for us. We’ve got to watch this bloke, big Jock. We have to try and wrap him up mate.

[Jock:] I told him you’ve been leading the banter, between the sides.

[Jim:] Oh really? No, I’ve been very quiet this week. (Laughs). I’ll let you go. See ya guys.

See you soon Jim, all the best this weekend.

[Jock:] Not really though Jim.

Ok, so back to you Jock… what’s your favourite position to play?

I prefer fullback, just because you get to do a bit more. You get to roam and it’s a bit more of a ball playing role. But in saying that, wing is fine, I love playing there too. Especially here under Jim and Brad’s attack, they really want us to be not just on the wing but roaming, so that makes it really fun and you don’t get stuck out there. You get the license to roam and be where you want to be and so it’s fun. So overall, fullback, because you get your hands on the ball a bit more. But either or.

I know your focused on the NRC right now, but are you excited about 2020 with the Reds?

Absolutely, I can’t wait. NRC is obviously good fun and a bit more relaxed, but we’re looking forward to getting out there and proving something as a team in 2020. I think last year, once again the team showed potential but now it’s about taking that next step and everyone’s keen to work hard and show it on the field. So hopefully we can capitalise on that. 

Thanks heaps for your time Jock!

No worries, pleasure. Good questions! Very friendly, no tough ones.

Bonus: "Rugby Rules" Question

You’ve been known to perform well at 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15. If you were talking to a fan who’s still learning about the game.... what’s the difference between these positions?

So 10 is the organiser, the guy that orchestrates everything… him and 9 (half-back) touches the ball the most I’d say. Centers: There’s two types of centers I guess. There’s big ball-carrying centers like Samu, although I guess he’s more a hybrid now… he can ball-play too… but then you can get centers like James O’Connor, he’s more of a skilful guy. So there’s two types of centers, big ball runners, like Sonny Bill Williams and Samu, and your skilful players.

Fullback, is like your second play maker I guess, he can organise too, if you’ve got the big centers. These days, a lot changes, depending on the balance of the side. So you can switch out ball players into other positions and have big guys in other ones. But you sort of need 2 ball players, whether that’s at fullback, or in the centers.

So in the wing… quick, steppy, big, although I’m not very big… there’s a few big boys out there unfortunately for me… tackle them around the legs I guess.

Numbers and positions for the backs are:

9: Half-back

10: Fly-half (or first five-eighth)
11: Left Wing

12: Inside Center

13: Outside Center

14: Right Wing

15: Full-back

To rugby fans out there who would like to understand the game more: what's a rule you don't always understand? What's something you would like me to ask one of the Queensland Reds to explain?

Catching up with Adam Korczyk

Right in the middle of the Brisbane Cities NRC season, Adam Korczyk took some time to chat. Adam was one of my first interviewees for this blog and is always great to talk to! (Catch up on that interview here.)

I was told afterwards that when he runs out this Sunday with his team, he will become the most capped Brisbane City player since the team began in 2014!

Brisbane City is playing NSW Country at Norths Rugby Club in Wooloowin on Sunday!!! Even with the Wallabies World Cup campaign kicking off on Saturday, there’s still some great NRC games this weekend, so don’t miss them!

Thanks for taking the time to catch up. You were one of my first interviews when I started Reds Rugby Rules and its always good to chat.

Thanks for having me Tommy. Always a pleasure, never a chore.

Tough loss last weekend for Brisbane City. What has your team been working on this week ahead of this Sunday’s game at Norths?

Yeah, obviously it was a tough loss. Canberra are a tough team, they’ve got a lot of Brumbies players. I think this week we’ve sort of been working on our game. We probably weren’t working around the game plan as much against Canberra and sort of let them back in the game with a few turn-overs and penalties. We’ve been working on following our game plan. If we follow the plan we’ve set out for this season, I think we’ll get wins that way. We’ve got the talent, we’ve just got to work hard and the wins will come from that.

How have you found this year overall so far?

Yeah, it’s been to good to be honest. Obviously I’ve been here since the start of the NRC, as you know at Brisbane City, it’s always a different group coming in, different players, sometimes different coaches. We’ve gelled quickly, which is obviously what you want with a short season, I think we’re going well. All of the games we have had, we’ve certainly been in it, we’ve been competing well.. But maybe the lack of cohesion, not being a team for so long… that you have to get over quickly in the NRC. But yeah other than that, I’ve always enjoyed playing for Brisbane City and it’s going well so far and hopefully we’ll be going into the finals as well.

This is your 6th season with Brisbane City in the NRC! What’s been your favourite thing about the NRC so far?

My favourite thing is… Obviously, you get to play footy against Super Rugby players from different states a teams, but the best thing is always playing with club players that have come through, say the Queensland Premier rugby system, that you might not have had the chance to play… so it’s meeting new players and sort of testing yourself. When I came in, I was obviously a young guy, I always enjoyed playing the Super Rugby players. Now I’ve developed a bit and played Super Rugby myself, and I love playing with the young guys coming through. The energy and the “youth” they bring is quite contagious, you love it. I’m not that old, but there’s 19-20 year olds around and you feel young and that’s the main thing I’ve enjoyed this season.

Do you still get called kiwi now?

I do! I think it’s sort of stuck with me now. Obviously. I got the nick-name when I moved from New Zealand, I was born there and I had an accent… I’ve lost my accent, I think, I don’t know what I have now. Probably a bit of everything. But yeah, they still do call me Kiwi. During my first year at NRC, our team manager called me Carol Brady (from the Brady bunch), because I had long hair. So people started calling me Carol. But people sort of moved on and that’s disappeared into the woodwork. I’d rather have Kiwi than Carol that’s for sure. (Laughs.)

What are your future goals as a player?

My aspiration has always been to make the Wallabies. I was lucky to be in the Wallabies squad in 2017 and I still have that hunger. I’ve been in Super Rugby for 4 years and I think I can still develop. I’m 24, I’m still young, so for myself, it’s just to get better and always aspire and have that final goal of making the Wallabies and experiencing test rugby.

Always a pleasure catching up Adam. See you at Norths this weekend!

No thank you. It’s always a pleasure chatting with you. Can’t wait to see you there!

2019 World Cup Special

Reds Rugby Rules 2019 World Cup Special

The Wallabies kick off their 2019 World Cup campaign in Japan, on Saturday against Fiji!

All the best to Cheika and the whole team!!!!

This is Reds Rugby Rules, I figured I’d post something special about all of the Reds players who are part of the squad.

Samu Kerevi

Samu has risen through the ranks to become not only the Queensland Reds captain this year, but Wallabies Vice-Captain as well. Along with captain Michael Hooper, he will be leading the charge this Saturday. Samu has always been great to talk to and has always had time for his fans and supporters at Ballymore and everywhere he goes.

We’ve had some great chats for Reds Rugby Rules… make sure you catch up on past interviews here:

http://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/04/an-interview-with-samu-kerevi.html

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2018/03/fellowship-with-fijians-filipo-daugunu.html

http://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2019/02/captains-run-with-samu-kerevi.html

Taniela Tupou

I loved catching up with Taniela back in 2017 and have enjoyed a lot of laughs with him since then. Always one to make you smile off field, "Tongan Thor" is a serious threat on the field. He’ll be one to watch during the World Cup, for sure. Read some of his story here:

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/02/an-interview-with-tongan-thor-taniela.html

Izack Rodda

Izack has also risen through the Wallabies ranks over the last 2 years. When I interviewed him back in 2017, he’d just joined their training squad.

You can read our chat here:

http://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/06/a-conversation-with-izack-rodda.html

Lukhan Salakaia-Lotu

I still remember catching up with Lukhan in Samoa for this blog a few years ago, during the teams overseas match against the Blues. (He went by Lukhan Tui at the time.) I’ve enjoyed watching his rise on the international scene as well!

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/06/talofa-from-samoa-catching-up-with.html

Jordan Petaia

Jordan has proved his worth during the 2018 Super Rugby season, but since then has had a run of bad luck with injuries. Even though recovering from injury, based on his track record, he’s still been named in the World Cup squad and could be making his debut on the world stage very soon. Go Jordan!

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2018/07/chatting-with-jordan-petaia.html

James Slipper

Honourary mention, because… once a Red, always a Red. James has shown a lot of heart, working his way back into the Wallabies squad this year.

With Slips and the Reds back in Japan last year

James was my first ever interview for this blog. You can catch up on our previous great chats here:

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/02/yesterday-i-was-lucky-enough-to-sit.html

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/05/hows-james-doing.html

Rob Simmons

Once a Red, always a Red. Enough said.

https://redsrugbyrules.blogspot.com/2017/04/an-interview-with-rob-simmons.html

Will Genia

Can't leave out another 2011 Reds champ, Will Genia. I caught up with him earlier this year as well. Pleased to tell you he is still a gentleman.

James O’Connor

Life has led James O’Connor to Queensland for next years Super Rugby season and I couldn’t be more excited. I had a quick chat with him during Wallabies training in Brisbane earlier this year. I’m looking forward to interviewing him when he’s at Ballymore sometime soon!

All the best to all of the Wallabies this year, including this guy!!

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