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Australia’s most under-rated rugby halfback, Josh Holmes, was mentioned this week. A miracle. With Waratahs incumbent, Luke Burgess, heading to French club Toulouse after the Rugby World Cup for the next three years, coach Chris Hickey said the move will give him the chance to concentrate on Brendan McKibbin. And Josh Holmes.
It’s high time Holmes is not only mentioned, but strutting his stuff in the middle at elite level instead of captaining Warringah in the Sydney first grade competition. Nothing against the “Rats”, a superb club. But Holmes is a born rep footballer.
Yet the 2006 IRB International under-19 Player of the Year has been shabbily treated by a succession of Super coaches and by Phil Mooney when he was coaching Australia A.
That’s been impossible to comprehend. Holmes wouldn’t be the best in the world if he couldn’t play.
But Ewen McKenzie (then NSW), Andy Friend (Brumbies), and now Hickey have mainly kept Holmes on the back-burner. Or the bench.
In six seasons, Holmes has only played 43 Super games: 17 with the Waratahs and 26 with the Brumbies. Not nearly enough.
It’s pertinent to recall what was written on the ARU website on May 30, 2005: “Exciting young Warringah scrumhalf Josh Holmes has re-signed with the HSBC Waratahs for two years on a Rookie/Super 14 contract. Holmes moves from an HPU (High Performance Unit) contract to a Super 14 Rookie contract next year, and a full Super 14 contract in 2007.
“‘I’ve said before that Josh is a player with great potential, and he’s still very young,’ said head-coach Ewen McKenzie.
‘He’s only 18, which means he’s still got three years ahead of him as an under 21 player. Josh is a scrumhalf in Joost Van Der Westhuizen proportions at 185cm, and 91 kilos. He has a strong all-round game which includes a good pass, and an eagerness to take on the defence.'”
McKenzie was spot on quote-wise, but 17 games for Holmes under him doesn’t translate to a frontline selection.
Friend sacked Holmes, and Hickey hasn’t used him, preferring McKibbin whose rugby nous is sadly lacking.
Holmes has been lost in the telling.
He should be the Wallaby back-up to the dominant Will Genia, but the current selection panel hasn’t the vision to pick an out-of-sight Holmes as Bobby Dwyer did with Phil Kearns in 1989 from Randwick twos, when Eddie Jones was the club’s top hooker.
Kearns played 67 Tests, 10 as captain; Jones never played a Test.
Kearns’ undoubted talent was rightfully recognised through the side-door; Holmes’ talent up-front has been ignored.
So it’s been frustrating championing the Holmes cause for four years, to no avail. But early this year, support came from the most successful Wallaby coach in history – Rod Macqueen.
“Josh is a very good player. I think the fact he played inside centre for Warringah last season rounded his game.
“He’s certainly good enough to be the number one Waratah half, the pathway to the Wallabies”.
Strike two. That brick wall NSW selectors keep in Holmes’ way seems impregnable.
But talent will always win through eventually. It’s whether Josh Holmes has any patience left after being continually kicked in the teeth.