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Ex-Wallaby Carter Gordon sets sights on NRL pre-season after code switch

Carter Gordon in action during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between Australia and Georgia at Stade de France on September 09, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

Carter Gordon is so focused on rugby league that the former Wallaby hasn’t “really been watching” Test rugby since switching codes. As the Wallabies prepare for their clash with England in London, Gordon is looking ahead to pre-season with the Gold Coast Titans.

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It wasn’t that long ago that Gordon was a key member of the Wallabies’ squad. With coach Eddie Jones in charge, the young playmaker was the only flyhalf picked in the team’s Rugby World Cup squad, while Ben Donaldson was selected as a ‘utility’ option.

Gordon had only played five Test matches before the sport’s showpiece event, which included two starts against New Zealand and another away to France. With a game-breaking ability in both attack and defence, there was a lot to like about what the Aussie brought to the table.

But Gordon wouldn’t play for the Wallabies again before completing a stunning move to the NRL in July. Following the Melbourne Rebels’ campaign, the flyhalf bid farewell to rugby union after signing a two-year deal with the Titans for 2025 and 2026.

Unlike fellow 2023 Wallaby Mark Nawaqanitawase, Gordon didn’t debut in the NRL in 2024 but that opportunity doesn’t appear to be far off. The man himself is firmly focused on what lies ahead after committing to the Gold Coast club.

“I haven’t really been watching it to be honest,” Gordon told reporters.

“Obviously, I’ve been trying to learn as much as I can in the league.

“Obviously, every now and then you see a post that comes up and you see how the boys are doing, a lot of those guys are still my mates so I’m obviously checking in with them to see how it’s going.

“But definitely all (my) focus is on rugby league.”

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With Tweed Seagulls in Queensland’s Hostplus Cup, Gordon was nothing short of sensational from the get-go. The code-hopper started two games at centre and another two at five-eighth – finishing the season with four tries, four line breaks, almost 400 running metres, and 41 tackles.

The Titans have listed Gordon on their website as a centre, but it seems that won’t be the case moving forward. While acknowledging that there’s a lot of work to be done during pre-season, the eight-Test Wallaby insisted that the halves is where he wants to play.

“I really enjoy playing in the halves,” Gordon said. “I actually enjoy playing in the centres as well.

“I think it’s just going to be a bit of a work in progress through the pre-season, but I’m definitely keen to get in the halves and ball play.

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“Obviously, that’s something that I’m familiar with coming from rugby union.

“I think it just needs a bit of work in pre-season. Obviously, get a feel for it, but ideally, I want to be playing there.”

The Gold Coast Titans failed to make the NRL finals last season after finishing 14th with a record of eight wins and 16 losses. They started the campaign with eight losses on the bounce before shocking the New Zealand Warriors 27-24 in Auckland on April 25.

With the squad boasting genuine quality, including the likes of fullback Jayden Campbell, former New Zealand Kiwis playmaker Kieran Foran, as well as Queensland Maroons representatives David Fifita and Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, Gordon is excited to have joined the Titans.

“The Titans were one of the first clubs I spoke to and I was talking to them through the whole process,” he explained.

“I’m a Queensland boy originally, I grew up in the Sunshine Coast and the drawcard of coming back home was a big one for me.

“… You look at the squad’s that’s building now and the squad that we’re taking into 25, it’s strong. We’re going to learn on the back of last year and hopefully win a lot more games in 25.”

Louis Rees-Zammit joins Jim Hamilton for the latest episode of Walk the Talk to discuss his move to the NFL. Watch now on RugbyPass TV

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Comments

2 Comments
O
OJohn 13 days ago

A tragedy he's not playing for the Wallabies

H
Head high tackle 13 days ago

I havnt really been watching it to be honest.... Thats OK No one has been watching you at pre-season league training Carter.

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JW 2 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

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