In less than five full games of rugby, Stade Francais coach Ewen McKenzie says Mark Gasnier has already exceeded expectations and proven himself to be a dual international in the making. If he so desires.
While McKenzie remains unconvinced that playing Test rugby tops Gasnier’s priority list, he is certain the former NRL star is good enough.
“No problem at all,” McKenzie told AAP in Paris on Wednesday.
“He’s got a great skill set and good aptitudes. There’s no question. Once he’s got 30 games under his belt, he’ll be a very good package.
“I mean, he’s our reserve goalkicker at the moment. He’s doing touch kicks. He’s in the game. You can use him in the game in many different ways. You can play him in multiple positions.
“And he can organise people. The problem is he’s got to develop his French so he can organise, but he’s getting through that quite comfortably.
“But he’s out there. He’s lost at times, but what do you do? If he doesn’t play, he doesn’t get any better.”
McKenzie tried to lure Gasnier to the NSW Waratahs three years ago before the Kangaroos Test ace opted to remain at St George Illawarra.
Now he finally has his man, McKenzie admits to being surprised at just how classy the Paris-based club’s prized Australian recruit is.
“His kicking skills were better than I thought they’d be. I underrated his ability there,” McKenzie said.
“His uptake; he absorbs information quickly and he asks questions on the field, during training. He’s eager to learn. He’s happy to put his hand up.”
McKenzie had no doubt Gasnier’s rugby career lay in the centres, where the 27-year-old will receive some game time against Castres on Friday night.
But he’s been learning the tricks of the trade on the right wing.
“He makes mistakes and teams target him but, as a result, he carried the ball three times as much as anyone else last week and broke tackles and beat the line and scored a try,” McKenzie said.
“Other players aren’t doing that. They don’t have that capacity. And, what, he’s played four-and-a-half, five games of rugby.”
McKenzie is contracted to Stade for two years with a further one-year option and is already certain he will be trying to retain Gasnier as well when his two-season deal expires.
If he’s successful, that would mean Gasnier would have turned down offers to play in the Super 14 and – under current ARU laws – also spurned the chance to represent the Wallabies at the 2011 World Cup.
Three seasons in the French league would make Gasnier eligible to represent France, the Wallabies’ opponents this Saturday in Paris.
But just as he created a stir last week when he suggested Gasnier – who has a French fiancee – might choose to play for France rather than the Wallabies, McKenzie on Wednesday said he may also opt for lifestyle instead over further sporting fame.
“I don’t glean from any of my conversations with him that he is desperate to play international rugby,” McKenzie said.
“He’s certainly good enough. No doubt. But I just keep looking at it and people make assumptions and I’ve spoken to him and he says: ‘I’m just trying to learn the game here. I’m not worried about what I’m doing in two years’ time’.
“He’s done a lot already in his career. He has experienced the international stage. It’s not like he hasn’t done it. Okay, it might be in another sport but he’s still been there.
“I think as a professional player, that will come. But he’s just trying to establish credibility at the level he’s playing now.
“Once he gets that credibility, he’ll feel confident. At the moment, he wants to develop the confidence.
“But the euro’s so strong, he might just enjoy staying here. That’s from a financial point of view.”
McKenzie said although Gasnier will probably always have critics, there will never be regrets about his cross-code switch.
“There’s no doubts there. He’s very happy with the decisions he’s made,” McKenzie said.
“He’s just enjoying the game here. The press pressure etc just doesn’t exist.
“What he calls the goldfish bowl is not there for him. He’s enjoying that. He just enjoys the day-to-day walking the streets (being) unknown, travelling in the gaps, seeing Europe; he was in Rome the other week. You know, it’s just a different life.
“I’m sure some people will be thinking that if he’s not scoring three tries a week, then he’s failed.
“But that’s disrespecting the opposition and whatever. That’s just not realistic.”
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