JAMES O'Connor was given the nickname "Rabbit" when he was young due to his ability to jink and step his way out of trouble on the field.
It was a talent that saw him win a Wallaby call-up as a teenager, but his ability to dodge the full effects of off-field drama was almost as prolific.
That appears now at an end, with the latest incident at Perth airport set to test not only the paper-thin patience of the ARU, but throw into question his short-term future in Australian rugby as well.
For most Wallabies, being denied entry on a plane for being drunk and argumentative would earn a stinging rebuke but it would not spell the end.
For O’Connor, however, the airport matter comes after a long string of official rebukes by the ARU for misbehaviour, some of which never made into the public domain.
The 23-year-old was made well aware last month the next straw could break the camel’s back after a Lions tour that infamously saw he and Kurtley Beale pictured at 4am in Hungry Jacks a few days out from the second Test in Melbourne.
A blasé apology angered his teammates, and the feelings grew stronger after O’Connor missed the bus to training a week later and skipped the final team meeting a day after the third Test in which Robbie Deans made his farewells.
O’Connor has been involved in an incident almost every year of his Wallaby career: he was arrested on the Gold Coast in 2008 (no conviction was recorded), fined for a food fight in 2009 and was involved in a fracas with Kurtley Beale and Quade Cooper in Paris in 2010.
In 2011, he was suspended for a Test after going missing on the morning of the World Cup squad announcement, after drinking the night before.
The dissatisfaction of Australian teammates about O’Connor’s behaviour was kept largely quiet until after the Lions series, when Melbourne Rebels announced they would not offer him a new contract for both financial and cultural reasons.
Rebels skipper Scott Higginbotham spoke in less-than glowing terms about his former teammate, and ex-Force teammate Ben McCalman also said any return by O’Connor to Perth would require him to meet the club’s high standards.
O’Connor appeared to heed the message, saying last month he understood about maintaining his Wallaby teammates’ trust by following the team standards.
Reports from the Rugby Championship camp were that O’Connor had responded well, and was being a constructive and harmonious influence.
After the Perth incident, however, and the subsequent investigation by the ARU that received an incomplete version of events from the evasive O’Connor, the cumulative weight of numerous past deeds must surely be about to crash down on the talented footballer.
The ARU are aware of perceptions of the public and their own players that the “three Amigoes” – O’Connor, Beale and Cooper – have been given a light disciplinary touch, which has enabled further poor behaviour.
A suspension for the Africa and Argentina tour will no doubt be looked at for the winger.
But the more telling decision will be that of Force powerbrokers, who laid down strict behavioural conditions for O’Connor to re-join the club next year. A spokesman said Wednesday night they were looking into the latest reports.
The Force are the only Australian club who are interested in signing him, so if they back away from the table, O’Connor could be forced to pursue options in Japan, France or rugby league.
