Wallaby Captaincy

'Definitely': Star pitches for Wallabies captaincy

Story by Sam Worthington MSN

Allan Alaalatoa's two Tests as Wallabies captain have been about as painful as they get.

There was 2022 in Florence, as Australia crashed to a historic loss to Italy - a shock result that led to Dave Rennie's axing as Test coach.

And then there was last year's Bledisloe Cup blockbuster at the MCG, as Alaalatoa ruptured his Achilles in a scrum, ending his Rugby World Cup dreams.

But despite those traumatic experiences, the veteran prop has thrust his hand sky high to lead his nation again under Joe Schmidt.

"I'll definitely step into that role if that's the way that the coaches want to go and the team wants to go," Alaalatoa told Wide World of Sports at the Super Rugby Pacific season launch in Auckland.

"I've always been someone that when I was coming through, I wanted to have a captain that I respected and that I trusted and if that's what the boys want then, yeah, I'll definitely be happy to step in that role and continue to grow."

Alaalatoa was named after Allan Border, with Samoa international father Vili a massive fan of Australia's legendary cricket captain.

The Brumbies skipper is playfully dubbed 'Captain Grumpy' by teammates but the 30-year-old is hugely respected for his ability to connect with people from all backgrounds.

"I just love being myself. If the boys want me to be the leader of the team then yeah, I'd love that. All this stuff (media) is probably the hardest. I was never a natural talker so it's something that I'm continuing to work on behind the scenes."

Alaalatoa will miss the start of the Super Rugby season as he continues to diligently rehab his Achilles.

He was thrilled to spend some unexpected time with new Wallabies coach Schmidt in Auckland on Wednesday.

"I was very excited with Joe Schmidt," Alaalatoa said.

"The (Super Rugby) captains met up with him this morning. He was a really good man with a great vision. He's got a lot of work to do with staff appointments but I think we're in good hands. He travelled up from Taupo and that's like a three and a half hour drive.

"He had to leave about three in the morning just to come and have a half hour conversation. It was awesome, man. Like, a lot of the media have been talking about him but it was great just to meet him behind doors and have a conversation.

"He was just asking questions, what's been happening, what are the changes that we need to make and what his focus is over the next couple of months. He's a really good man, really down to earth and very approachable."

Alaalatoa admitted he was "devastated" by Jones' decision to quit on Australia and move to Japan after leading the players to believe he was in it for the long haul.

"There was definitely belief in the group that he was going to be with us until the end of his contract," Alaalatoa said.

"Very disappointing but the World Cup boys have been training with a chip on their shoulder. We have to improve and we understand that we're playing for something bigger than ourselves here.

"We need to fight and bring rugby back in Australia."