The 89th captain of the Wallabies is a grounded and loyal club man with questionable fashion sense who once dreamt of playing for the Springboks.
Liam Wright, the 26-year-old Queensland flanker, was a shock choice as Joe Schmidt’s Test skipper for the start of a new era against Wales on Saturday.
Born in Durban, Wright’s family moved to Australia when he was seven, initially living in Sydney before settling in Brisbane.
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Wallabies captain Liam Wright poses for a portrait at Allianz Stadium. Getty
An under-20s star, Wright’s potential was obvious and Michael Cheika took him on tour as a teenager in 2017 as a Wallabies development player.
But the lineout technician’s international career has been stunted by a bad run of injuries, including five surgeries, and Wright played the last of his five Tests under Dave Rennie in 2020.
Most pundits didn’t have Wright in their matchday 23 to play against Wales, let alone as captain.
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Wallabies captain Liam Wright talks to Allan Alaalatoa and teammates at Allianz Stadium. Getty
But Schmidt was drawn to the “understated” blindside as a “natural leader.”
“What all the coaches liked about Liam is he doesn’t really say that much. He just gets on and gets the job done really well,” the former Ireland mentor said.
Wright himself was stunned at the honour as he became the seventh Wallabies skipper in the last 12 months, on the back of a tumultuous Eddie Jones reign.
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“It was a bit of a weird one,” Wright told Stan Sport’s Rugby Heaven.
“Obviously, we had a bit of dealings with Joe throughout the week and then in prep there, but he didn’t give me any indication or heads up or anything like that.
“So I was sitting in the team room with the rest of the boys, we’re all just waiting, going one by one (with the team naming). No.1 is this, No.2 is this. And so when No.6 came up I was really pleased to see my name there and I was a little bit shocked to be honest, to see the captain underneath it. I think the enormity of it hit me a bit afterwards. A big privilege.”
Liam Wright on the mower at Easts Rugby Union club in Brisbane. Stan
Wright is the co-captain of the Reds with Tate McDermott and has spoken about the lonely challenges of rehabbing from injury, most recently his shoulder.
He has been a proud member of Brisbane’s Easts Tigers since his under-11s days and is often spotted mowing the playing fields in his spare time.
“I’ve got the push mower at home,” he told Stan Sport’s Tim Horan in March.
“So I wish sometimes I could take this (ride on mower) down there and just zip it over in one day. I won’t pretend to be the expert but she’s pretty good.”
Asked by Horan what he’d like to do when he retires, Wright offered “maybe a little part time volunteer groundsman sort of thing.”
He’s got a bit more than that on his plate now as the Wallabies try to restore some credibility after last year’s Rugby World Cup humiliation that included a record 40-6 loss to Wales in Lyon.
Rob Valetini of Australia looks dejected at fulltime in Lyon. Getty
“There’s no scars at all,” Wright, who watched on from afar, claimed.
“The World Cup last year obviously didn’t go down the way we wanted it but boys didn’t shy away from that at all. I think they’ve all taken on good learnings, taken on good experience and made themselves better from it.”
Wright’s teammates also enjoy a playful ribbing at his fashion sense and Stan Sport’s Michael Atkinson asked whether the ‘Crocs and socks’ combo had to go.
“I definitely need to improve it,” Wright, nicknamed ‘Wrongaz,’ admitted.
“Whether or not I’ll be able to is another question. Yeah, fashion’s never been my strongest suit but as you can see behind me, we’ve got MJ Bale, a great sponsor of ours and looking forward to looking good in one of those suits at some point.
“Yeah, not my strong point, but I’ve got guys to lean on for that as well. I’ll lean on some of the Sydney boys for a few tips there.”
Liam Wright poses during a Wallabies portrait session. Getty
There is no certainty that Wright will be a long term Wallabies captain.
Schmidt has indicated that it could be a job share scenario as he gets to know his players for two Tests against Wales and one against Georgia in July before regrouping for the Rugby Championship in August-September.
“At the moment, everything’s pretty short term, including our preparation. We’ve had four trainings really. So I’ve really enjoyed working with Liam, but same with all the others from the leadership group,” the New Zealander said.
Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt talks to players at Allianz Stadium. Getty
“Not all the players that were selected wanted the responsibility either. Some players just want to get on and get their own job done. And while Liam didn’t put himself forward, he’s accepted the challenge… we’re just at the moment trying to take it step by step. The first step was to get the selection right.
“And then to get someone within the selection who already had a leadership role and wasn’t going to feel uncomfortable or distracted by the role. And it was a confidence we had in Liam as well.”
The last word goes to rookie Wallabies centre Josh Flook, who has been led by Wright for several years at the Reds.
“He’ll just be everywhere. He’ll lead from the front foot,” Flook said.
“He’ll run around the field. He’ll put his head into the dark places where I don’t want to put my head, that’s for sure. He’s not a big speaker at all.
“But when he talks, you listen. He has some very good words to say. You’re switched on when he wants to tell you something.”