“Once I get back on the field I can look to address that,” McDermott said, having spent the past two years as a momentum-shifter off the bench.
“It is a long time to lead as a halfback, but it gives me a chance to make sure I can be a little more selfish in terms of my injury and make sure I’m fully right physically and mentally to attack the back end of the year.
“If you’ve got your mind on too many different things, it’s really hard to grow in certain areas, and now it gives me a really good chance to hone in on some of those areas.”
As McDermott continues his recovery, McReight took his first strides as skipper – a 36-12 season-opening defeat to the Waratahs. But according to Harry Wilson, the captaincy would bring out the best in the superstar flanker.
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Wilson, the incumbent Wallabies captain, has been a close friend of McReight’s dating back to their schoolboy rugby days, and the pair have forged one of the more lethal back-row combinations in Super Rugby.
The reigning World Rugby No.8 of the Year – who will miss the opening rounds after undergoing off season knee surgery – declared McReight would not only find an extra gear as a leader, but ignite the best in those around him.
“Whatever team he’s in he leads from the front … so nothing changes too much for him,” Wilson said.
“It’s probably hard for him to keep finding extra gears because he’s probably been the best player in Super Rugby for a few years now, but I think the extra responsibility will only bring out more from him.
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“I think for ‘Wrongers’ it’s about just trying to get his body right, and once he does that then he’s the type of player who could go wherever he wanted to,” McDermott said of the one-time Wallabies captain.
“It’s huge shoes to fill, he was someone who was here with me from the start and there are not many boys from when I started left. His presence around the group is really hard to replicate.”
“It’s on everyone else in leadership roles to step up because he used to do quite a lot of work behind the scenes,” Wilson added.
“It’s now the chance for the next generation of leaders.”
McReight will lead the team onto Suncorp Stadium for the first time on February 27 when the Reds clash with the Highlanders, having lost their campaign launch against the Waratahs.
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