Western Force back-rower Nick Champion de Crespigny has become the most unlikely of Wallabies skippers, vaulted into the position for Saturday’s match with Japan.
In doing so, the flanker becomes one of the least experienced players to ever captain the Wallabies, with just two caps to his name.
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Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has often liked his captain to emerge from the back row ever since Liam Wright was suddenly named in his first game in charge.
Whereas Wright’s was almost destined as he came through the ranks, the Force bruiser’s rise is far from expected.
Champion de Crespigny has fought and scraped for every inch on the Rugby field, rewarded for years of hard work and toil after his maiden call-up to the Test side for the British & Irish Lions series.
His physicality saw teammates label him as a ‘psycho’ on the field, but he’s far from just sheer brawn.
Born in Canberra, the back-rower comes from a unique background, with the last name (pronounced de crep-nee) coming from a small town in Normandy in northern France where his family originates.
His grandfather, Rafe de Crespigny, is a renowned historian and sinologist and was awarded the Centenary Medal in 2001 for services to Australian society in Asian studies, while his cousin Richard also shot to fame in 2010, landing a Qantas flight after it experienced uncontained engine failure.
He emerged on the sporting radar as a rower, taking part in the Australian Youth Olympic Festival in 2013 while playing Rugby. He helped Uni secure titles in Thirds Colts (2015), First Colts (2016), Second Grade (2017), and First Grade (2018).
This caught the attention of the NSW Country Eagles in the National Rugby Championship, before spending the 2019 preseason with the Melbourne Rebels. The following year, he spent pre-season with the NSW Waratahs, which turned out to be the first year he would not win a title with Uni.
As COVID hit Australia, the back-rower was recruited by Castres and coach Pierre Henry-Broncan, who would join the Wallabies for the 2023 Rugby World Cup as a maul consultant.
Champion de Crespigny’s winning ways continued as the team finished first in the Top 14 regular season, eventually beaten in the Final 29-10 by Montpellier and Force teammate Brandon Paenga-Amosa.
The back-rower hit the ground running and quickly emerged on the Wallabies’ radars thanks to his brutal hits and physicality. His fiery confrontation with Henry Pollock playing for the Western Force against the British & Irish Lions showed what type of leader he will be - refusing to take a backward step.
He’ll need to do the same thing against Japan, with the Wallabies set to reunite with former coach Eddie Jones.
