O'Connor weighs up groundbreaking Kiwi move

NEWS: James O’Connor is in talks with the Crusaders about extending his Super Rugby Pacific career in a potentially groundbreaking trans-Tasman move.

The former Reds and Wallabies playmaker knocked back a deal to remain at Ballymore next season, where injuries had relegated him to a mentoring role in 2024.

The 34-year-old could be thrust straight into the No.10 for Rob Penney’s side, who are attempting to plug the gap left by Fergus Burke’s move to Saracens in England.

The NZ Herald reports O’Connor and the club are in discussions, the 14-time champions still recovering after Richie Mo’unga’s move to Japan and a shock finals miss in 2024.

O’Connor has been holidaying in New Zealand, the birthplace of his parents, and had discussions with the Chiefs about a potential move shot down by Rugby Australia three years ago.

A veteran of 63 Tests and 127 Super Rugby games across three clubs, O’Connor also coached schoolboy rugby in Queensland last season.

Trans-Tasman player movement is rare, but a strategy has been raised to promote more interest in Super Rugby Pacific on both sides of the ditch and aid the development of players.

The Reds’ recruitment of former New Zealand forwards Alex Hodgman and Jeffery Toomaga-Allen paid off last year, while Argentina’s Pablo Matera was a star of the Crusaders’ 2022 title-winning team.

Former Wallaby Digby Ioane wing played three games for the Crusaders in 2017 while a smattering of Australian hopefuls have enjoyed stints in New Zealand’s second-tier National Provincial Championship to gain experience.