Michael O'Connor (rugby)

Michael David O'Connor (born 1 February 1960) is a former rugby league and rugby union footballer who represented Australia in both codes, in other words a dual-code rugby international. He played for the Wallabies in 13 Tests from 1979 to 1982 and then the Kangaroos in 17 Tests from 1985 to 1990. O'Connor played club football in the NSWRL Premiership for the St. George Dragons from 1983 until 1986, and later the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles from 1987 until his retirement at the end of 1992, becoming captain of Manly in 1990, as well as winning the 1987 Winfield Cup with the Sea Eagles.

Originally from Canberra he toured with the undefeated Australian Rugby Union Schoolboys tour of Great Britain and France in 1977 alongside the likes of the Ella brothers Mark, Glen and Gary, as well as Queenslander Wally Lewis. His club rugby career was with the Canberra Royals, then Teachers Brisbane.

He was first selected for The Wallabies in 1979, a few months ahead of Mark Ella and others of O'Connor's prodigiously talented teammates from the 1977 Schoolboys side such as Michael Hawker and Glen and Gary Ella (Lewis by this time had chosen to play professional rugby league for Brisbane club side Valleys).

Tony Melrose was the first of this side to play for the Wallabies, in New Zealand in 1978. With a number of those players he was a young starter in the 1980 Wallaby side which won the Bledisloe Cup in Sydney in the 3rd and deciding game that year. O'Connor scored a try in this game marking his ascendancy in representative rugby and coinciding with a rebirth of Australian rugby and the beginning of a golden period through to the Grand Slam achievement of 1984.