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'12 months rehabbing for a World Cup you wouldn’t play in'- Quade Cooper
By Josh Raisey
Australia fly-half Quade Cooper addressed the Wallabies’ World Cup pool stage exit for the first time on social media after playing his first match since missing out on Eddie Jones’ squad.
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The 35-year-old was one of the shock omissions from the 33-player squad that travelled to France alongside former captain Michael Hooper as Jones opted for a young and inexperienced team instead.
While Cooper did comment after missing out on the World Cup initially, he has refrained from confronting the Wallabies’ World Cup these last few weeks as his former teammates crashed out in the pool stages for the first time ever following losses to Wales and Fiji.
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But after playing his first game after that disappointment, a preseason match for the Hanazono Kintetsu Liners against the Melbourne Rebels, the 80-cap Wallaby reflected on the past few weeks, and year in general.
After rupturing his Achilles against Argentina in August 2022, Cooper faced a race to be fit for the World Cup, and was able to recover in time to play in this year’s Rugby Championship only to then fail to make the World Cup as Jones opted for the untested duo of Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson.
Cooper mentioned these “highs and lows” in an Instagram post before presenting the stark reality of his past year in a dig that appears to be aimed directly at Jones.
“After the high and lows of the past 3 months it was good to be back out on the field,” he said. “12 months rehabbing for a World Cup you wouldn’t play in. Keep your goals based around the process not the outcome.”
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Watching the Wallabies struggle in France would have presumably made his absence all the harder to take for Cooper, as he would have felt he could have made a difference. Jones has faced a lot of criticism in the wake of the World Cup, and Cooper has not opted to kick him while he’s down but he has nevertheless has not hidden how disappointed he is.
I was quite dissapointed not to see Quade (or Hooper) selected and play in what would have been his last WC but would it have made any difference though? His experience and what he brings to the game might have been that spark the Wallabies needed. Pure speculation on my part.
If any lessons on experience in a squad were needed, look at the Boks.
Should have been at the world cup. And Hooper. Everybody knows it. Except the dipshit running the show.
Another in the long line of those shafted by Eddie. Would have been good to see Quade play and it seems he's turned himself around. Sad to see him and Cipriani sabotage their careers and learn their lessons too late in the day.