John Eales personifies all the values that make up Australian rugby scripture.
He had all the attributes coaches could want in a player and, later in his career, as a captain.
He had leadership, athleticism, was a one-club man, beat the All Blacks more than he lost to them, claimed two Rugby World Cups, and his goal-kicking accuracy was a lock.
He is first and a foremost a Queenslander, having donned a red jersey in over 100 games. While success was hard to come by at provincial level, he more than made up for it playing for Australia.
Part of the 1991 team that won the World Cup, that early taste of success spurred him on to forge his own chapter as captain in 1999.
He credits that early win as a minor blueprint of how to win rugby’s grandest showpiece, learning under the tutelage of the legendary captain Nick Farr-Jones in handling pressure moments.
His team in ’99 also had it all – world-class and experienced, battle-hardened players in every position – which is a must to have any chance of tasting beer out of the Cup.
A robust and dominant tight five meant their devastating backline was receiving front-foot ball, and more often than not putting points on their opponent.
Their style of play was streetwise, enterprising, incisive and uniquely Australian – a far cry from today’s current team.
Eales majored in psychology at university, which gives us an insight in to what made him such a superb leader. His ability to get the best out of his team corresponds in his dealings with each member separately, owing to different personalities. He got the best out of all his players and thus the team exceeded as a collective.
He captained the Wallabies in 55 Tests, a golden era for Australian rugby, in which the Bledisloe Cup was more equally shared by New Zealand and Australia.
He is etched into folklore for his dramatic, last-minute penalty goal to beat the Kiwis in New Zealand to win back the Bledisloe in 1998.
He rates the current crop for the World Cup behind the curve as to where they would want to be, however he also believes the All Blacks are out on their own and any of the top nations has the ability to beat the other on any given day.
Thus, Eales reckons, on the day, Australia can beat anybody.
The old adage goes ‘nobody’s perfect’, so ‘Nobody’ was an apt nickname for Australia’s most successful rugby player – and the world’s best kicking lock.
What Aussie fans would give to have a player and leader of his calibre on the plane to Tokyo.
Hertryk
Roar Rookie
I sent my Wallaby gear cut up with a pictures of kids playing Rugby in WA to him..... Such a disappointment! He came to WA after the fiasco and was just all mouth and trousers..
ken gargett
Guest
"While success was hard to come by at provincial level". in fairness, during eales time with the reds, the reds won the early Super Six comp in 1992, with auckland, wellington, canturbury, nsw and the fijian national side. they won the Super 10 Comp in 1994 and 1995, losing only one game across both years and winning both finals playing away in south africa. topped the table in the first super 12 the following year although did not progress in the finals. they also made the finals in 1999, topping the table in the regular season but again not progressing and also made the finals in 2001. and unlike more recent times, they hardly lost a game to nsw during his time. oh, for such a lack of success these days.
phil
Roar Rookie
John Eales ex Legend, now just a big disappointment! For not standing up for WA Rugby and all those West Australians that supported him through his rugby career! I have a fair bit of rugby memorabilia framed on my walls, but i've turned Nobody's around so it doesn't see the light of day anymore. Though i might just send it back and say thanks but you can keep it!
robel
Roar Pro
Unfortunately he completely trashed his reputation on the field by his shameful support of the backstabbing and axing of the Western Force. WA remembers.
Istanbul Wingman
Roar Guru
The nickname came from 'Nobody's' perfect, I believe. Eales was pretty close. What was really amazing was how he followed straight on from Steve Cutler, who has been completely forgotten, but who was a legend in his own right. Cutler and Campbell were giants for their time and their domination over the All Blacks counterparts helped pave the way for a number of victories over the Kiwis at the 1980s. One thing I'll never understand is why the 'Baby' Blacks of 1986 didn't bring in the towering Gerald Wilkinson from Wellington, especially when the All Blacks played Australia in the New Zealand capital - Wilko's hometown. Instead they picked some 1.9m converted flanket - to face Cutler!
Bob wire
Guest
A great rugby player, one of the greatest Wallabies. By chance my family and I stayed in the same hotel as the Wallabies in Perth, they were there to play the Boks. Eales was swamped by people wanting photo's, autographs etc. He was totally accomodating, and most people got their momentous. I'm not sure what role he played in the Force fiasco, but I choose to applaud his ability on the rugby field.
Die hard
Roar Rookie
He has done a big donut in return for the sport that gave him fame and fortune. I wonder does he even enjoy it anymore
Phil
Guest
Well said,piru,unlike some of your WA colleagues.I have also been disappointed with his role as an administrator of rugby,something which I thought he would be a natural for.However,nothing can diminish the memory of his rugby skills and leadership on the field and how we would love to have someone like him at the helm of the Wallabies now.
piru
Roar Rookie
I still remember him as a great player and one of the few Aussies I would have had in an All Black jersey given the chance. My teen years seem to be full of memories of him breaking Kiwi hearts, but always an honourable and sportsmanlike competitor. The doco he did on the haka was great, I know some consider it cringey but not I. It's unfortunate his involvement with the ARU board and the decision to try to kill the Force was as it was, but I won't let that tarnish his on field exploits.
Ex force fan
Guest
I only remember Eales for his role in the betrayal of WA Rugby; one of the three musketeers with Cameron Clyne and Bill Pulver that is responsible for the Force fiasco. This off-field disaster was not even mentioned in the article above but in WA his reputation is destroyed. Nobody just became a nobody that went missing when he had to stood up for rugby values which he portrayed to be the custodian off. A good player and successful captain but his off field performance was disastrous and therefore he will never be one of the greats for me.
Puff
Guest
John Eales will always be recognized as a great Wallaby captain and perhaps the best lock our system has ever produced. Unfortunately his governance and off field involvement in the code is besieged with blinkered vision. While playing, he may have addressed and worked with different personalities, to obtain a polished performance but he never delivered any ascendancy in the rugby board room. In fact many rugby supporters are quite scathing regarding the position he has taken on many issues and perhaps rightly so.
Hertryk
Roar Rookie
He did absolutely NOTHING for Rugby in WA. His time on the board was more than useless..He lost all credibility for me. I thought he was one of the greats, but not now. He turned his back on the ALL Blacks he turned his back on Rugby in WA.
Kiwikrs
Roar Rookie
It's a shame that he has been such a failure for rugby off the field
RahRah
Roar Rookie
All true, all very true - unfortunately I will now always remember him as the man who helped to try and wreck rugby in my state.
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Roar Guru
Eales once quipped derisively of his nickname ‘Nobody callls me Nobody’. Maybe it all started when he said that. It wasn’t all beer and skittles for Eales. He struggled at time with the captaincy. He had to grow into it. The 95 RWC was not great for the Wallabies. But when he, ONiell and McQueen teamed up something worked. Even when they had every cup possible in the cupboard it was not all pretty. Player power had begun and it was something around that that forced McQueen out. Eales too seemed to want out early. He jumped in 2001 at about the same time as McQueen. Rome was then in cultural decline. Eddie took us to number two with a whole pile of mind games tangled up in his training wheels. We lost our scrum and only recently got it back. Eales for me signals the end of a amateur era. We were amateur but more professional due to a nobler accountability in my observation. This was all long before Twitter, and the rise of the rugby social media celebrity, and text ‘abuse’, which, it would be fair to say, hasn’t gone swimmingly for us. Maybe players should just get off the screens. (I write from my screen). Eales had a great career when we had a strong team culture (though imperfect and temporary) within a well run organisation. Eales himself would probably say he was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. But that penalty kick to win a Bledisloe wasn’t just luck. Nor was chasing and catching runaway backs with a 2 metre body. He did bloody well. We miss the likes of him and the culture he thrived in equally.