Willpower Puts Horwill In The Wallabies' Squad
The Sunday Age
Sunday August 24, 2008
The big man had plenty of talent, but was being held back by plenty of attitude, writes David Beniuk.
JAMES Horwill may have risen in the pecking order to become the Wallabies' first-choice lock, but last year he found himself at a crossroads. He had to make an impression on selectors or resign himself to a role as a fringe squad member. Having ticked all the boxes on the path to becoming a fully fledged Wallaby, playing in Queensland and Australian junior sides and with Australia A, Horwill made his Test debut against Fiji in Perth in June last year.It was the only game he would play for Australia in that World Cup year. "I think maybe missing out on the World Cup squad was something I took, not hard, but it was a big disappointment to me," he said."That was something that I sat down after . . . and said, 'Look, it's now or never.' Not now or never but it's time for me to step up."That resolution appeared to have worked when new Wallabies coach Robbie Deans plucked Horwill from the Queensland Reds this year, seemingly because lineout chief Dan Vickerman was injured. But Horwill has played every game since Deans took over and broken the long-standing automatic selections of Vickerman and Nathan Sharpe in the second row. Stepping up has also meant growing up for the 23-year-old. "Obviously, discipline was a part of my game that I lacked," he said. "I tended to have brain explosions or brain snaps where I'd do something stupid that probably at the time I thought was a good idea, but you look back and it wasn't. "So that was something that I have worked pretty hard on, not actually physically doing anything but logically. I just said, if it seems stupid at the time, it's probably not a good idea to do it." His new outlook was rewarded in April when Queensland coach Phil Mooney made him Reds captain. Horwill wasn't aware of it at the time, but Deans had also pencilled him in as a major part of his plans for the Wallabies. Asked when he had identified Horwill as central to his new direction, Deans did not hesitate. "The first time I saw him play," he said. Horwill's hallmark has been aggression, and the photo of him with his left eye battered and closed after a punch-up against France last month is one of the striking images of the Wallabies' 2008 season. The fact two Frenchmen were suspended over the incident and Horwill was cleared shows his new approach is working. He's also played through pain, managing a ligament injury in his foot since the Test against South Africa in Perth a month ago, while he toiled through two draining encounters with the All Blacks. With three tries in the bag as well, Horwill has exceeded his own expectations. "Yeah, I guess you could say that," he said. "I went into this Super 14 season wanting to play my best for the Reds and hopefully that would continue into a squad. "When I first got called up, it was something that was a pleasing surprise, and each week has just been an added bonus to me, but each week I want to make the best of my opportunities, and now that I'm here, I definitely don't want to give it up."
© 2008 The Sunday Age