The tour may be short - the Wallabies will play just two matches, against the Barbarians at Twickenham on November 26 and against Wales at the Millennium Stadium the following weekend - but it looms as an important fortnight in O'Connor's career.
The 21-year-old has spent time at full-back, on the wing and in the centres across his 27 Tests without establishing himself in one spot.
But with Quade Cooper back at home recovering from knee surgery and centre Pat McCabe also on the invalid list, it is a chance for O'Connor and fellow utility Berrick Barnes to take centre stage.
Australia coach Robbie Deans confirmed he will use one player at fly-half and the other at inside centre but then pulled the cards back into his chest.
"Whether I play at 10 (fly-half) or 12 (inside centre) - it's wherever Robbie sees fit - I'm just looking forward to going on this tour," O'Connor said.
"Moving to the front line is something I'm keen on - whether it's at 10 controlling the game or at 12 outside Berrick.
"I haven't touched the ball as much as I'd like but I've been given a good opportunity on this tour to get a bit more involved in the decision-making.
"I'm looking forward to working with Berrick and I think we can complement each other's games nicely."
However they line up, O'Connor and Barnes an expect plenty of traffic coming their when they confront giant Baa Baas centre pairing Stirling Mortlock and Sonny Bill Williams.
Mortlock, the former Australia captain, has already declared the two lightweight Wallabies will be tested and targeted in defence.
But O'Connor is not fazed by the prospect of extra attention.
"I've spent a lot of time on defensive work," he said. "That's was one of my main goals at the start if the year. I didn't want them making easy gains and that meant making my tackles up front.
"I want to be in that front line."
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