The Wallabiesโ Bledisloe Cup drought might have stretched to 24 years, but dual international Michael OโConnor believes Mark Nawaqanitawaseโs extraordinary two-year stint in rugby league proves the 15-a-side game in Australia still produces world-class talent.
โYou look at his ability and what heโs been able to do; to me, it reflects really well on rugby that we have a player like him come over to rugby league, and there are quite a lot of sceptics in rugby league around rugby union, and to see how heโs dominated the competition, I think itโs a good thing,โ OโConnor said.
Nawaqanitawaseโs decision to sign with the Roosters following the Wallabiesโ dreaded 2023 World Cup campaign caused a stir in Australian rugby.
Rugby Australia boss Phil Waugh was shocked the talented back, who had only broken into the Wallabies in late 2022, was jumping codes just 12 months later.
But the athletic winger, who scored twice on his Super Rugby debut in 2020 and also bagged a double in his third Test against Wales in Cardiff, never looked back.
Nawaqanitawase made an immediate impression in league, soaring high against the South Sydney Rabbitohs to score on debut.
He then topped the tryscorers list in 2025 (with 24) to earn Kangaroos selection for the Ashes in England, before bowing out with an Origin series win and an NRL title, where he scored twice in the Roostersโ 19-18 win, to cap an incredible 26 months.
OโConnor, who played 13 Tests for the Wallabies before scoring 87 tries across 10 seasons of rugby league for St George and Manly, said he wasnโt shocked Nawaqanitawase had scaled such heights, having first seen him during his short second stint as a selector with the Wallabies in 2019.
But he added that the player returning to rugby, where he will join Japanese League One club Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights, was better than the one who left rugby in mid-2024 following the Paris Olympics.
โThe Roosters certainly did their homework when they signed him,โ OโConnor said.
โHeโs a real athlete, and that was apparent even when I was a selector.
โHe made the Australian under-20 squad that went over to Argentina in 2019. He was scoring tries, he had a great instinct for the game and where the ball was, and his visual awareness was through the roof. But I think heโs just grown into a man, and heโs a far more complete footballer now.
โI think his move to rugby league has been a good thing; it certainly has brushed up some areas of his game โฆ heโll go back up with a lot of confidence.โ
Whether the Wallabies bear the fruit of his two years in rugby league remains to be seen.
Wallabies coach Les Kiss wanted to pick the 26-year-old for next monthโs Nations Championship campaign in the United Kingdom, but Nawaqanitawase ruled himself out after seeking time off.
The decision means Nawaqanitawase could run out for Fiji or Italy next year, given the outside back would have missed the last three years of international rugby.
OโConnor said Nawaqanitawaseโs availability would be critical for the Wallabies if they wanted to go deep at next yearโs World Cup.
โAt a World Cup, itโs just apparent that you need world-class players, and a lot of them,โ he said.
โHeโs a far more complete footballer now.โ
Michael OโConnor on Mark Nawaqanitawase
โJust watching New Zealand on the weekend, just the power of their lineup, thereโs just no weaknesses, and thatโs where we need to go. We need to get a complement of players whoโve played together and got no weaknesses.
โHeโs a world-class player, and thatโs what we need. When weโve had success in the past, weโve had world-class players.โ
While Nawaqanitawase might be unavailable for the Wallabies, fellow Origin cross-code star Zac Lomax could get the chance to push for a national call-up on Sunday when Australia A takes on the USA Eagles in Nashville.
Lomax will be hoping to link up with another former Origin star, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, who will later this week be named for his third spring tour.
OโConnor said he felt Suaalii, who was exposed defensively during the Wallabiesโ 43-21 defeat in Sydney on Saturday, had been harshly rated since being catapulted into the Australian team in late 2024.
โI feel a bit sorry for him in a way,โ OโConnor said.
โHeโs not complained once, but heโs played a number of positions, and he seems to be playing one position, and then someone says heโs a fullback or winger, or an outside centre.
โItโs apparent that he has got great attacking skills. Heโs very effective at running at the line and breaking through the line, and we need players to do that.โ
OโConnor, who made his Wallabies debut in 1979, a year before the great Mark Ella first ran out in gold, said todayโs generation needed to play flatter at the line.
โIf you can look at where we can improve, weโre playing a lot behind the advantage line because of the rush defence, particularly from South Africa and also New Zealand,โ he said.
โBut we need players to get through the advantage line and Suaalii can do that. Heโs got good feet, heโs got good attacking nous, so thereโs a spot for him there somewhere.โ
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