In another reality, Wallabies scrumhalf Jake Gordon would be settled into France, ready to see old teammates potentially battle it out.
Gordon will be one of the few Wallabies to start every game on the end-of-year tour, set to begin at scrum half at Stade de France on Sunday, but his chance to play in France could’ve come a lot earlier.
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On two different occasions, the NSW Waratahs has been linked with a move to the Top 14.
In 2023, Gordon had signed with Toulon as a ‘World Cup joker’, only for the deal to fall through due to ‘vestibular’ issues.
A year later, rumours of a move to Perpignan emerged, eventually leading Gordon to make the call to stay and fight for the gold jersey.
It was a move that paid off spectacularly for the 32-year-old, starting in 16 Tests in the past 18 months.
“It was an exciting opportunity at the time to possibly come over here. The World Cup joker was disappointing, where, similar to [Dylan Pietsch], had some vestibular kind of issues, and that didn't come to life," Gordon said.
“I think playing in a country like France, where rugby is really on the rise and they're playing some really exciting rugby, is an awesome opportunity.
“In saying that, I've loved my time staying in Australia and playing for the Waratahs, but also having the ability to play for the Wallabies as well.”
Gordon and the Wallabies were hungry to show they are a team continuing to grow despite Ireland blowing the scoreline out in the last quarter.
“It's definitely a disappointment, it’s not a lack of effort and the way we're training, how we're desperate to make improvements in our game,
“It's just disappointing in some of the ones on the weekend, that's probably not visible to them, but there are a lot of guys making sure they're getting all their work done.
“Possibly at times we could seem like we're overdoing it a little bit, but there is the intentions for us to really put on a performance this weekend that the group's proud of, firstly, and then hopefully our fans can get behind as well.
“…It’s been tough, especially when you're training so hard and looking to get results when you don't get, not so much the recognition, but the way it probably ended on the weekend against Ireland was probably disappointing and maybe didn't reflect how close the game was for large parts of the game.
“I think at the 60 [minute mark], it was a three point game. Same with the English. It was a game that was 10-7 at the 55 and it's seems little bit more of a blowout, but definitely challenging and especially for the effort that we're putting in.”
