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Kicking on ... Quade Cooper is back in the Wallabies fold. Source: GREG WOOD / AFP
IT has been 317 days since Quade Cooper last pulled on a Wallabies jumper, but having bided his time until coach Robbie Deans was sacked, he is more confident than ever about delivering on the international stage.
Cooper will be Ewen McKenzie's main man as Australia aim to wrest back the Bledisloe Cup from the All Blacks after a decade-long drought. After failing to click with Deans, he is relishing the possibilities under his Queensland mentor.
"I am just grateful to have a great coach who shows belief in me and the rest of my teammates," Cooper said.
"I am sure all the other players who get the chance to be selected in the team will benefit from the confidence Ewen instils in players.
"(Deans) has moved on, I'm just looking forward to being involved with the Wallabies again. I've got nothing bad to say about him."
Cooper fell out with Deans over game plans and a perceived lack of support last September after a Test against Argentina. Deans never picked him again.
Asked if he ever felt his 38-cap international career was over, Cooper replied: "Every time you put on that Wallaby jumper you have got to think about it as a privilege, an opportunity, and it could be your last time.
"I will never take that for granted, I will never expect to be part of the team."
So while every man and dog was telling Cooper that he would be recalled to the national side when McKenzie named his first squad as Wallabies coach last Friday, the 25-year-old refused to celebrate prematurely.
"There were a few people telling me I would be back in, but I never got ahead of myself. I waited to see my name read out on Fox Sports," Cooper said.
"And I was over the moon."
While it would be natural for Cooper to feel gutted about missing out on playing a Test against the British & Irish Lions, the playmaker denies being overly affected by it.
"As much as everybody has thought I'd have a lot of emotions, going up and down, I was quite content with everything," he said.
"I was happy to work hard and do my part.
"You can never be down if you've worked hard to give yourself the best opportunity.
"If that opportunity didn't come, I was happy with the effort I put in. I haven't been up and down. I've always been happy and looked at the positives.
"The positives of missing out was spending time with family and friends, with other guys who missed out.
"A big moment for me was representing Queensland against the Lions. I am just so grateful to people for supporting me at that time.
"It was a massive moment in my career, the opportunity of a lifetime. I can't say I never played the Lions."
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