Slipper dedicates Wallabies win to Michael Hooper
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Wallabies captain James Slipper paid tribute to Michael Hooper after Australia beat Argentina in the opening round of The Rugby Championship.
Michael Hooper decided not to play against Argentina on Saturday, as the Australia captain is not in the right frame of mind.
Hooper said: "While this decision did not come easily I know it is the right one for me and the team at this point in time.
"My whole career I’ve looked to put the team first and I don't feel I am able to fulfil my responsibilities at the moment in my current mindset."
Speaking after the match, Slipper dedicated the win to Hooper:
“I just said to the boys before we ran out, I would like us to put in a performance where we make our fans proud, make our teammates proud and, most of all, to make Hoops proud,” Slipper said.
“So I was just really ecstatic we got the result but mainly because of Hoops, and what he has done for this team and what he means to us as blokes.”
James Slipper on Michael Hooper.
“It was tough. I felt like most of the game we were behind,” Slipper said.
“It’s a real proud moment for me and for the team, because we really wanted to put in an effort that our fans could be proud of, but also that our captain, Hoops, could be proud of.
“We were thinking about him all day and we were playing for him tonight.”
He added that his “immediate reaction was just pure sadness for the bloke."
“For someone who has been the face of the Wallabies for the last ten years, and plays the way he does, 80 minutes, body on the line, week-in, week-out, and has this real strong mental toughness, for him to put his hand up and say he wasn’t right, I was just gutted for him. My story, it took me right back there to be honest. Just seeing how vulnerable he was.”
“But at the end of the day, he put the team first once again,” Slipper said. “To be honest, I didn’t do what he did. He stood up and reached out. I have so much respect for the bloke. We just him to get right, get him home. If anyone deserves a break, it’s that bloke.”
