- Gun rugby hasn’t had a great 2024 when it comes to football.
- I received more bad news in the mail this week.
- Cooper fears his Wallabies career could be over
Rugby star Quade Cooper was pictured receiving a letter every motorist would dread as he sat in one of Sydney’s trendiest cafes – a notice informing him his licence had been suspended.
The 36-year-old has not had a great 2024, having failed to make it into new Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt’s squads for tests against Georgia, potentially spelling the end of his stellar career for his country.
And the year took a turn for the worse for the rugby player when he sat down to breakfast on Wednesday and read a letter informing him that the Queensland government would suspend his driver’s licence unless he paid hundreds of dollars.
Cooper was with a colleague at The Depot cafe in North Bondi when he received the bad news about the hit to his bank balance and the possibility of him being taken off the road.
He has been playing for the Nanazono Kintetsu Liners in Japan after being controversially overlooked by former Wallabies coach Eddie Jones for last year’s World Cup in France.
His first match with the Osaka-based side did not go as planned as he was sent off in the 11th minute, with the opposing team increasing the score to 21-0 before he returned to the field in a 41-14 loss.
With the Japan Rugby League One season over, the Queenslander has returned home and would have been a keen spectator as the Wallabies beat Wales twice and edged past Georgia this month.
He will also no doubt be keeping a close eye on Australia’s rugby sevens team at the Paris Olympics after they got their campaign off to a flying start with two wins on Thursday morning.
Quade Cooper was spotted reading a letter no motorist would want to receive while having breakfast in Bondi on Wednesday morning.
The former Wallabies star was accompanied by a teammate when he read the bad news.
Cooper was seen reading a letter from the Queensland government informing him that his licence could be suspended unless he paid a substantial amount.
Cooper appeared to see the end of his international career in May when he said he hoped Schmidt would go with Australian-based players in his Wallabies squads, but said he remains desperate to get back into the green and gold.
“Of course, if we are going to play, we want to play at the highest level,” he said.
‘But I also understand that there has to come a time, at some point, where they put all their energy and their time, everything, into these younger guys.
“I’m sure that’s what Joe Schmidt wants to do, rather than signing players from Japan or Europe, because they desperately want to keep their boys in Australia.
‘I still feel like, skill-wise and everything, I can play.
“It’s only been eight months since I played my last match (for Australia). I don’t feel out of place at all.”
The fly-half made his debut for the Wallabies in 2008 and went on to play 76 tests for Australia.
Cooper (pictured playing for the Wallabies in 2023) fears his stellar international career may be over now that new coach Joe Schmidt is passing him by.
He first rose to prominence as a talented schoolboy when he won a scholarship to the Anglican Church High School in Brisbane.
Cooper played in ‘Churchie’s’ first XV in 2005 and 2006 and was quickly signed by the Queensland Reds after finishing high school.
Along with fellow youngsters Kurtley Beale and James O’Connor, Cooper was seen as an excitement machine at the time as the Wallabies looked to once again become a force in world rugby.
The New Zealand-born playmaker has dabbled in boxing and has dated the likes of model Laura Dundovic, Australian swimming champion Stephanie Rice and socialite Nicole Shiraz.