Deposed Gregan backs new captaincy team
Dumped Australia skipper George Gregan is not bitter towards new Wallaby co-captains Phil Waugh and Stirling Mortlock and believes the pair will lead their country with aplomb.
Despite leading his country a record 58 times and admitting he was disappointed with being overlooked for the top job, Gregan said he could understand why coach John Connolly made the decision.
“I’ve been skipper for a long time but you are never guaranteed anything,” the veteran scrum-half told The Daily Telegraph.
“I wouldn’t say I’m upset. It’s a great honour and, as I said any time I was captain, it’s something that you just absolutely cherish.
“This is the direction John and the selectors have decided in terms of building a squad going into the World Cup. I think when you are promoting leadership within the group you have to give guys a chance to lead and that is probably the rationale behind this.
“I’ve said so many times you probably need half a dozen really strong leaders in the group to have a really successful campaign.”
With the captaincy role at the back of his mind Gregan is now concentrating on what he does best, plying his trade for the Wallabies.
“Being captain or not being captain, it won’t detract from doing what I have always done and that is being really diligent in my preparation for Test matches,” continued the 34-year-old.
“When you are captain you have extra activities and commitments which you embrace. I just know when I haven’t been captain it didn’t change the way I prepared in any shape or form.”
Connolly looks set to start the inexperienced Matt Giteau in the important pivot role against Wales on Saturday, and Gregan said he himself will work to ensure the Western Force playmaker is ready for the challenge.
“I’ll work hard with Gits because he hasn’t played there (scrum-half) since last year’s end-of-season tour – he played all the Super 14 as a 10 or a 12.
“It’s a massive jump going from those positions to playing at halfback, which he experienced on the tour.
“There are a lot of things that he is going to have to take on board – which he will do, because he is a really talented footballer, plus he has experience too.”
Although Giteau will occupy the number nine position against the Welsh, Gregan admitted that he was unsure how long his rival will be played at that position, given his value in a variety of other positions on the ground.
“So we are rivals, but there are a lot of unknowns about how long he is got to be playing there. It’s a hard thing to say – if he plays all year at nine then it is going to be a good competition,” he added.
