Australia's most capped Test player James Slipper calls time on storied career

Slipper, 36, joined Welsh legend Alun Wyn Jones (171) and New Zealand's Sam Whitelock (153), in becoming just the third player to reach 150 Tests when he ran out in Auckland last week.

In a full circle moment, Slipper's Test career will finish where it started in Perth, having become Wallaby No. 843 in 2010 when he debuted as a 21-year-old off the bench against England at Subiaco Oval. Renowned for his ability to pack down on both sides of the scrum, he featured in 14 Tests in his first international season, despite having played just three Super Rugby fixtures for the Queensland Reds at the time.

Earlier this year, Slipper became just the fifth Wallaby in 126 years to play in two separate British and Irish Lions series alongside all-time greats John Thornett (1959 and 1966), Peter Johnson (1959 and 1966), Tony Miller (1959 and 1966) and George Smith (2001 and 2013) - joining Smith as just the second player to achieve the feat in the professional era.

Slipper holds the Australian record for most Test caps and is the most capped international Test prop of all-time, 14 clear of Ireland's Cian Healy.

A Gold Coast junior, Slipper became the Wallabies' 83rd Test captain in 2015 and has gone on to lead his country on 15 occasions. He is one of only 13 Wallabies to play 100 Tests, reaching the milestone in 2020 in a memorable 24-22 win over New Zealand at his home ground, Suncorp Stadium.

Slipper is also in exclusive company at Rugby World Cups. When selected for the Wallabies' 2023 campaign in France - having previously been part of Australia's 2011, 2015 and 2019 campaigns - Slipper joined George Gregan and Adam Ashley-Cooper as the only Australians to play at four separate World Cups.

Slipper was a member of Australia's matchday 23 for the 2015 Rugby World Cup final in London and broke Gregan's record for the most Rugby World Cup matches by an Australian in 2023 when he ran out at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard against Portugal.

Slipper eclipsed another of Gregan's records last year: that of most-capped Wallaby. He reached the milestone against the All Blacks in Sydney last September as part of a 2024 international campaign in which he featured in nine of the Wallabies' 13 Tests.

"As a young kid on the Gold Coast playing backyard footy with my brothers, it was a dream to pull on the gold jersey, and to be able to say I've lived my dream for what's coming on 16 years is more than I could ever have asked for," said the man of the moment.

"It feels like the right time for me to step away from Test Rugby. There's a number of good young props coming through who will need time in the saddle leading into what's going to be an unbelievable experience of a home Rugby World Cup in 2027.

"It will also allow me to spend more quality time with my wife Kara and two young daughters Lily and Ava which is something that I owe to them after 16 years of full-time professional rugby.

"There's plenty of people I need to thank and I'll do that when the time is right but for now my focus is on preparing well to finish The Rugby Championship in a positive manner with the team."

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt praised his veteran prop as a human.

"First and foremost Slips is a great person," said Schmidt.

"He's incredibly popular in the group and is the ultimate team man. I know how much representing the Wallabies means to him and his record speaks for itself with the number of milestones he has achieved at the highest level of the game."

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