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Where's Wally: It's a tour of duty
- Iain Payten
- From: The Sunday Telegraph
- October 31, 2010 12:01AM
James O'Connor. Picture: Getty Images Source: Herald Sun
JAMES O'Connor is constantly reminded of his youth by his Wallabies team-mates.
There's the "Justin Bieber" nickname he's picked up, grief about his fashion sense and an obsession with social media.
And then there's Wally. He is the stuffed toy that acts as mascot for the Wallabies on their spring tour, and the job of looking after the furry Wallaby falls to the squad's youngest player.
In 2008, it was O'Connor. In 2009, it was O'Connor again. In 2010 - yes, it's still O'Connor.
"Yes, I still have Wally," O'Connor, 20, says with a sigh. "He got nicked at training today."
The job of every other Wallabies tourist is to steal the mascot and make O'Connor pay a fine.
"My first tour I was one of the worst ever in looking after him. At the airport, when we were leaving Australia, he got nicked out of my bag," O'Connor says.
"The best thing to do is you just have to hold onto it everywhere you go. It's safer."
Hotel safes and the absence of Team Tonga - Tatafu Polota-Nau and Wycliff Palu - on tour ease O'Connor's mind somewhat. "They'd take him and send me photos of him tied up and then demand a ransom," O'Connor laughs.
No other player has done three tours with Wally, which may be a pain for O'Connor, but it is also a timely reminder of how much the talented attacking back has achieved at such a young age.
After becoming the second-youngest Wallaby when he debuted against Italy at age 18 and 126 days at the end of 2008, O'Connor has fast become an accomplished Test footballer.
Were it not for the sight of him strolling around with a stuffed toy, it would be easy to forget that the blond Queensland kid is, in fact, still a kid.
He doesn't turn 21 for another nine months, but O'Connor has now played 23 Tests. To put that in context, consider that Mark Ella only played 25.
"It puts into perspective when you read Waikato have just signed up Tana Umaga at age 37," O'Connor says.
"Robbie and some of the boys were having a chat at lunch and we were like, 'Imagine if I'm still playing when I'm 37'. I could have a fair few caps under my belt. I don't know if I'd be in as good a shape, though."
O'Connor's quest to offload Wally may have to wait, but he is certainly not the junior tourist when it comes to the on-field business of the Wallabies.
Bigger in the shoulders and squarer in the face than when he first arrived on the scene, O'Connor's confidence as a starting Wallaby is obvious and he can be seen heavily involving himself at training as an experienced player.
"I am definitely a lot more confident and comfortable at training and in the games, I guess," O'Connor says.
"You look at Van [Humphries], he's 34 and still waiting for his first cap, so it is definitely a confidence boost to have been given a chance so young.
"I am a lot more comfortable and confident in the environment. It is definitely a changed role now there are younger, well, not younger but less experienced guys in the team. I can teach them new things, calls and things, helping them out with plays. I have had to think more about it as well, which makes me a better player."
O'Connor admits when he first arrived in the Wallabies there was an aspect of being thrilled to just run on, but that swiftly changed. He wasn't happy to just be there, he wanted to win.
"It's symptomatic of the entire team's mindset," O'Connor says.
"We are trying to build something special and I think we are at that crossroads now. We are in a good position and everyone has that mentality where we want to win and be the best team in the world. My personality, I always want to win, I don't like losing."
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...-1225945582013
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