‘Gibson-Park does it so well’: Wallabies great’s take on Ryan Lonergan

Wallabies great Matt Burke has likened ACT Brumbies captain Ryan Lonergan to Ireland scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park, following last weekend’s standout performance in a hard-fought 14-10 win over the Highlanders in Dunedin.

Lonergan took the field at Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium on Friday evening for his 100^th Super Rugby appearance, leading the Brumbies into battle, who were looking to extend their unbeaten run against New Zealand opposition this season.

The Brumbies had claimed a drought-breaking win over the Crusaders in Christchurch during the early rounds of the season, and followed that with thrilling wins at Canberra’s GIO Stadium against the Blues and Chiefs.

In the Brumbies’ second match across the ditch this season, Lonergan scored the team’s only first-half try and kicked two conversions. It was the latest in a series of strong performances from the five-Test Wallaby, who continues to push for higher honours yet again.

“We said it earlier in the year, I don’t know how he didn’t get a start for the national team earlier in his career,” Burke said on Stan Sport’s Between Two Posts.

“The captaincy seems to be sitting well with him down there.

“Giving people some space on that nine-10 roll, but also just bringing the forwards into play, and you need that. When you’ve got a busy nine, it takes a lot of pressure off that 10 sometimes and that organising role. The Irish do it so well, Gibson-Park does it so well, just be able to control and go from there.

“He’s really coming into his own. He’s done incredibly well and when you look at that Wallaby selection, he has to be in contention there, and he kicks goals as well.”

Lonergan made two Wallabies appearances during the 2025 Rugby Championship, debuting as a replacement against the All Blacks at Eden Park. Tate McDermott suffered an early inside the first quarter, which saw Lonergan play more than 60 minutes that afternoon.

The now 28-year-old was named in the matchday 23 for three Autumn Nations Series matches against England, Italy and Ireland, while Jake Gorodn continued to hold down the fort as the team’s first-choice No. 9.

“One thing that was important for this Brumbies-Highlanders match, Ryan Lonergan, I think he’s the best tactical kicking nine in Australia,” former Wallaby Morgan Turinui explained.

“I think Gordon maybe has a better quality technical box kick but in terms of choice and variation, I think Lonergan is probably the best.

“I thought he was pretty much a complete performance in steering them around the park.”

The Brumbies sit in fourth place on the Super Rugby Pacific ladder after nine rounds, with three New Zealand teams ranked higher. It doesn’t get any easier for the Brums, who host the Fijian Drua in Canberra this week before facing the table-topping Hurricanes in Super Round.