John Eales

John Eales's Biography

John Eales AM is an Australian rugby union legend and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby. John is in high demand as a keynote speaker for corporate events, lunches and after-dinner functions, delivering invaluable lessons in the corporate arena. He inspires and instructs by focusing on the importance of coaching, teamwork and culture within corporations and the necessity for faith in the abilities of team members, particularly in times of change, in order to remain composed in the face of aggressive competition.

In a career that spanned 10 years, John Eales played a total of 86 Tests for Australia, captaining them on 55 occasions and accumulating 173 test points, making him the highest-scoring forward in the history of rugby. When he retired from rugby in 2001, he was Australia's most-capped captain and regarded as the most outstanding forward in world rugby. His athleticism and natural leadership qualities made him an automatic selection in any World XV.

John Eales was also inducted into the Australia Institute of Sport's Best of the Best in 2011, awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 1999 for services to the community and rugby.

In 2004 John attended the Athens Olympics as an Athlete Liaison Officer for the Australian Team. He repeated the role at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Eales acted as a "rugby ambassador" at the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France, which involved a number of media duties. . John's sense of fair play and genial nature made him one of the most respected figures in the game, and an extraordinary ambassador for sport and Australia.

But John Eales is a man whose outstanding qualities extend much further than his exceptional skill on the football field. He is an inspirational leader and business man through both his actions and his relentless determination.

While most fans can easily list his many sporting achievements, few people know the details of John’s impressive business resume, which includes, being founder of the Mettle Group (now part of Chandler Macleod); sitting on the boards of Flight Centre; the Australian Rugby Union, and GRM International lecturing at the University of Notre Dame in Sydney; and consulting to the likes of Qantas and Fuji Xerox.

John has been a great ambassador for rugby. Indeed so highly is John remembered that an elite group of experts, including former national coaches Bob Dwyer, David Brockoff and ex-Wallaby Jeff Miller voted him as the No.1 player Australia has produced. In 2002 the ARU launched a prestigious award to honour the game's best Wallaby player each season, known as The John Eales Medal. The ARU also named John Eales an Australian Rugby Statesman. In 1999 he was awarded the Order of Australia (AM) for services to the community and rugby.

John is also author of “Learning from Legends in Sport” and “Learning from Legends in Business” and has been a contributor to the Australian Financial Review for the last 11 years.