Ashley-Cooper's Bledisloe hunger

NSW Waratahs and Wallabies star Adam Ashley-Cooper says he'd love nothing more than to bow out of Australian rugby with a Bledisloe Cup win.

Adam Ashley-Cooper at the Australian captains run

Adam Ashley-Cooper (pic) wants to end his Australian rugby career with a Bledisloe Cup series win. (AAP)

Wallabies vice-captain Adam Ashley-Cooper says he'd "trade everything" to end his career in Australian rugby with a drought-breaking Bledisloe Cup series win.

Set to join one of Australian sport's most elite clubs on Saturday night, Ashley-Cooper has revealed next year's Rugby World Cup will be his swan song in the gold jumper and he's eyeing a glorious conclusion .

"I certainly see myself and my girlfriend heading towards Europe after the World Cup," he told AAP.

"I'm very happy career-wise with what I've been able to achieve and I'm pretty keen to get overseas and experience something different."

Regarded as the Wallabies' "Mr Fixit" - and so much more - Ashley-Cooper will join George Gregan, Nathan Sharpe, George Smith, Stephen Larkham and David Campese as only the sixth player to make 100 Test appearances for Australia when he tackles the All Blacks in the final trans-Tasman showdown of 2014.

"I remember when it all started that there was no way I thought I'd ever play Super rugby, let alone for the Wallabies and, here I am, on 99 Tests," Ashley-Cooper added.

As a teenager, Ashley-Cooper wanted to be a tennis star, but his mother talked him out of it and put him on the path to rugby.

Now, instead of dreaming about hoisting the Wimbledon trophy, Ashley-Cooper craves ending a dozen years of misery in 2015 by helping the Wallabies regain the Bledisloe Cup.

While it goes without saying he'd love to bow out as a World Cup winner in his third appearance at the global showpiece, Ashley-Cooper says long overdue trans-Tasman bragging rights is what he covets most.

"It's going to be 100 hundred Tests this weekend," he said.

"Hopefully there'll be a few more. The only thing I really want to achieve before I go is a Bledisloe.

"So I've got one more year to do that and that's next year.

"That'll be my last crack and, I tell you what, I'd trade everything in for a Bledisloe.

"One, because it means a lot to me and, two, I know how much it means to this country."

First things first, though, and after back-to-back losses to South Africa and Argentina and with Australian rugby in turmoil, Ashley-Cooper also knows what a win over the All Blacks this weekend would mean.

"With everything's that going on at the moment, and the results over the last couple of weeks, a win is really, really important for Australian rugby," he said.

"And, particularly, for our supporters."


Share

3 min read

Published

Updated


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world