Wallabies rookie opens up on being ‘able to fulfil the dream’ and reveals how he wants to repay Joe Schmidt
Wallabies back-rower Nick Champion de Crispy and head coach Joe Schmidt (inset).
Rookie Wallabies back-rower Nick Champion de Crespigny has opened up on his rapid rise to the top and will not rest on his laurels heading into the 2026 campaign.
Champion de Crespigny was one of Australian rugby’s success stories in 2025 as he returned to the country after three seasons with Top 14 outfit Castres.
The 29-year-old hit the ground running at the Western Force, where he caught the eye with several excellent performances during Super Rugby Pacific which earned him a call-up to the Wallabies squad.
He eventually made his Wallabies debut in their defeat against the British & Irish Lions in the first clash of the three-Test series in Brisbane and although his services were not required again against the famous touring team, Champion de Crespigny returned to Test action as a replacement in the Rugby Championship loss to the Springboks in Cape Town.
Captained the Wallabies against Japan
His fledgling international career then hit its peak when he became Australia’s 92nd Test captain in a hard-fought victory over Japan in Tokyo in the first match of the Wallabies’ 2025 end-of-year tour.
The Wallabies are back in camp in Sydney this week, and Champion de Crespigny is now one of the leaders of head coach Joe Schmidt‘s squad.
“It was very fast. I think it was quite nice because there was a lot of sacrifice and to come back to Australia and that was the ambition, to come here and try to do that and to be able to fulfil the dream was really good,” he told reporters.
“As everyone else is, you’re always looking forward and trying to be better and keep pushing.
“I was very privileged for [the captaincy] to happen and very grateful that the group trusted me. But I also sit there knowing there’s 15 other guys who are leaders on the team so it made it really easy for me out there.”
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Champion de Crespigny revealed that his newfound status and responsibility are things which he will not be taking for granted in the build-up to the upcoming season.
“I know this year it’s going to have to be another big Super Rugby season and to be part of this group, there are lots of great players in Super Rugby; you’re going to have to compete every single week to get back in here,” he explained.
‘It’s still sinking in’
“I was able to share a nice glass of red with my family and savour the moment a little bit, but it’s still sinking in.”
This week’s camp marks the final time the Wallabies will assemble ahead of July’s Nations Championship Tests, which will be Schmidt’s last games in charge of the team.
Apart from that victory over Japan, the rest of Australia’s Autumn Nations Series campaign did not go according to plan as they suffered successive losses against England, Italy, Ireland and France – the first time the Wallabies failed to win a Test on a European tour in 67 years.
Champion de Crespigny believes Australia’s upcoming Nations Championship Tests against Ireland, France and Italy will give him the opportunity to repay Schmidt for the faith which the coach showed in him.
“It means a lot. I think the whole group can say we’ve got such a good relationship with Joe and the amount of effort and sacrifice he puts in, we appreciate it a lot,” he said.
“I think we’d like to go out there and put a performance that can send him off the right way.”
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