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Big-ticket rugby sevens recruit Michael Hooper trained with his new teammates at Sydney’s Centennial Park on Monday and was a “real pest”, attacking the session like the man who for a decade was among the most relentless in world rugby.
Scrum half Matt Gonzalez shed light on how the Wallabies great had adjusted to life as a sevens recruit since his ugly exit from the 15-a-side game, which came on the back of Eddie Jones’ staggering decision to axe him ahead of the Rugby World Cup in France.
“Having him here lifts everyone’s competitiveness. He’s a real competitor,” Gonzalez told Wide World of Sports at Rugby Australia headquarters.
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“He had one full training session with us today [Monday] and we’ve seen already at the breakdown that he’s going to be a real pest, even at training, so we’re going to have to be on our game in terms of that stuff.
“We do a lot of seven-on-seven work and it’s usually two-hand touch and the breakdown’s kind of left alone a little bit to give the attacking team a chance, and Hoops was just kind of in there getting his hands around the ball, pulling the ball out, so if we weren’t there quick enough he’d rip the ball out. It’s good for us; it keeps us alert and it kind of keeps us accountable for getting to the breakdown quick enough.”
Hooper’s World Cup omission was originally put down to a calf injury, but Jones later told The Sydney Morning Herald that he had dumped Hooper, Quade Cooper and Bernard Foley because they were not “the right role models for the team going forward”.
Jones’ whack for Hooper was not well received by the vast majority of Australian rugby fans, who are in awe of a man who played 125 Tests, is the longest-serving Wallabies captain and won a record four John Eales Medals.
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Another of Hooper’s new sevens teammates, fullback Tim Clements, said he was “thrilled” that the former Wallabies skipper made the switch and spoke of his inspiration.
“To echo Gonzy’s [Gonzalez’] comments, Hoops is a guy that in our rugby arena has done everything. In the 15s game he’s a role model,” Clements told Wide World of Sports.
“He’s probably a little bit embarrassed, but most of us boys were not so long ago in school watching Hoops debut and playing for the Wallabies and running around.
“So to have a guy of his calibre, both on the field and off the field — he’ll be really, really important for us and will only be adding to that competition that we’ve already built in the squad and making the squad better.”
The 2024 men’s and women’s sevens seasons will get under way in Dubai on the first weekend of December.
Hooper will join the sevens program full-time in January and is hoping to debut in Perth on the Australia Day long weekend.
The 32-year-old wants to pull on green and gold at the Olympic Games in Paris next year.
“We’re all Wallabies fans and watching outside of the fishbowl it was an interesting situation,” Clements said of Hooper’s Wallabies fallout.
“But I thought to his credit Hoops handled it really, really well. He’s been nothing but amazing for us and I thought how he handled that whole situation only furthered his position in Rugby Australia.”
Gonzalez said Hooper had been “a little hard done by” and could have been “beneficial” in France for the Wallabies, who became the first Australian team to be eliminated in a World Cup pool stage.
“But ultimately, we’re also not in that sector and we’re just outside looking in,” Gonzalez added.
“That’s our opinions, I guess. We’re not the selectors, either.
“One door closes, I guess another door opens for him.”
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