Wallabies scrum-half pinpoints what makes Jamison Gibson-Park world-class

ACT Brumbies captain Ryan Lonergan described British and Irish Lions star Jamison Gibson-Park as being up there with “the best halfback in the world” ahead of the clash between the sides in Canberra almost 12 months ago.

Lonergan and Gibson-Park were among the standouts on a cold night in the capital, with the Lions maintaining their unbeaten run on the tour. Gibson-Park would later start in all three Lions Series matches against the Wallabies, playing at least 70 minutes in each Test.

Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham had hoped that Lonergan’s performance would lead to higher honours with the Wallabies. Lonergan debuted against the All Blacks in Auckland and featured in four matches during the Spring Tour, including three Autumn Nations Series fixtures.

The now 28-year-old came off the bench away to England, Italy and Ireland, which included 10 minutes during the defeat at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. Gibson-Park was replaced at the 70-minute mark as the Irish held on for a 46-19 win.

Lonergan and Gibson-Park are both in the mix to feature for their respective sides in the opening round of the Nations Championship, with the Wallabies hosting Ireland in Sydney. Lonergan was asked about Gibson-Park and again spoke highly of the Ireland No. 9.

“I think he’s class. I really like his passing game and his ability to almost ball play as a nine, he can really control their game and he can see space really well from the base of the ruck,” Lonergan told reporters in Sydney.

“It’ll be exciting if I get to go up against him. I played him Brums [versus] Lions and then over in Ireland last year. He’s a class player.

“He’s been within the top three nines for a long time I reckon in the world. We did a little bit of a review on him this morning actually and keen to get out there.”

Gibson-Park is revered as one of the best ball-playing scrum-halves in rugby, and that’s an area of Lonergan’s game that has undergone “a natural progression.” Lonergan reached the 100-game Super Rugby mark earlier this year and has seen the benefits of that experience.

Lonergan reached that milestone in a 14-10 win over the Highlanders, with the skipper touching down for a try in the hard-fought triumph. Mat Burke praised Lonergan on Stan Sport the following week, with the Wallabies great mentioning Gibson-Park as well.

Burke highlighted Lonergan’s ability to take pressure off the 10, which is something the Rugby World Cup winner noted Gibson-Park does well. Lonergan started in 14 of 15 appearances for the Brums this year, playing a key role in wins over four of five New Zealand sides.

“The consistency in my performances. I had a lot of exposure this year, I played a lot of minutes and through that I got comfortable in my role at the Brums and I started to see the game pretty well because I spent a lot of time out there,” Lonergan said when asked about his form in 2026.

“I’d say that’s probably the biggest thing I noticed was just how comfortable how I felt out there and it seems to slow down a little bit for you when you’ve spent a lot of time on the pitch and you can see the pictures a little bit better than when you haven’t spent a lot of time out there.”