With the Wallabies out of the World Cup, we say goodbye to two great players that marked an era of Wallaby success that included a World Cup win in ’99, success in the Tri Nations, and Super 14 dominance with the Brumbies for many years.
One of the best halfback pairings for a long time, Stephen Larkham and George Gregan were practically an institution at the Brumbies and the Wallabies. So much so that Chris Whitaker, Gregan’s understudy at international level, is the most capped player to start off the bench.
Larkham was unfortunately injured for most of the tournament, which I feel played a huge role in the Australian machine not being able to fire on all cylinders on saturday. Without Larkham and Gregan working their magic for a final time, we sadly bid farewell to the maestros that partnered eachother 78 times at international level.
For fourteen years of service to Wallaby and international rugby, George Gregan will not be seen again in the gold jersey and that is understandably difficult for him, especially ending it the way they did on saturday.
Often misunderstood and disliked by the opposition fans, Gregan will be remembered not only for his commanding scrumhalf play, but as one of the great gentleman of the game who always acted with respect and dignity off the field.
In this exclusive interview from rugby.com.au, George Gregan, the most capped international player ever, speaks about the dissapointment of losing this vital match. He also reflects on what went wrong, and the emotions involved in playing his final game for his country.
“The aspect of sport that you learn is that you have your good times and your bad times, but you share it with great people.”
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