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Give Pocock a year off and develop Hooper, McMahon and Butler

11th February, 2016
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How long will Australia persevere with this backrow? (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)
Expert
11th February, 2016
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The short answer to the question about David Pocock and his sabbatical intentions is this: let him go and study at Oxford or Cambridge for a year and develop Michael Hooper, Sean McMahon and Jarrad Butler as his successors in the Wallabies back row.

We have a fair idea how this sabbatical is going play out for Pocock from the evidence of what happened when Daniel Vickerman, a player with a similar life and playing history as Pocock, took a similar path in his rugby career.

Vickerman, in his prime a dynamic and dominating second-rower, suffered serious shoulder injuries in 2006. He came back, like Pocock from his injuries, to play for the Wallabies in the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He suffered subsequent injuries in 2008 and left to study at Cambridge University.

More rugby:
» David Pocock could take a sabbatical from rugby
» Australia’s flanker depth in a state of sixes and no sevens
» Liam Gill to leave the Reds after 2016
» Super Rugby format explained

Vickerman returned to the Wallabies in 2011. He played strongly for the side in the 2011 World Cup but never with the effectiveness of his early years. He retired in 2012 from stress fractures in the tibia of his right leg.

My guess is that when/if Pocock comes back to Australian rugby in 2018 that he will go through a similar playing and injury trajectory as Vickerman.

Although he is currently injury free, Pocock wants to take 2017 off from playing rugby. He wants to take a study sabbatical to prepare himself for his life after rugby as an advocate for environmentalism.

Full credit to him for this. But he has to understand that he is jeopardising his career as a rugby player.

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The Brumbies have made it clear that they are unhappy with this break. Remember, the Brumbies gave Pocock a big contract in 2013. Pocock was injured that year. He came back in 2014 and during his third game damaged his anterior cruciate ligament.

This meant that Pocock had endured two knee reconstructions in two years. And as a consequence of these injuries, Pocock has played 19 matches for the Brumbies in three seasons.

Brumbies chief executive Michael Jones has been quoted in The Daily Telegraph as saying this: “It creates all sorts of problems if Poey takes the break. My preferred solution, and our offer to him, doesn’t allow a break.”

It is hardly any wonder that the Brumbies want Pocock to play through for them until the 2019 World Cup in Japan. For through no fault of his own, admittedly, Pocock has not fulfilled the playing obligations of his contract with the Brumbies.

The etiquette in these matters, where injuries prevent a player from giving due value to his rugby franchise on the field, is for the player to somehow reimburse the franchise, if possible, with his next contract.

This is a matter of etiquette. It is not a matter of obligation.

Pocock, like every professional rugby player, has the right to dictate the terms of his contracts if he is in a position to do.

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The ARU have entered the discussions with the inference that if Pocock wants to take a sabbatical at Oxford or Cambridge, then this should be allowed, without too much prejudice.

In other words, the ARU is not doing hand-stands about losing Pocock for a year. But if this means he comes back to Australia for 2018 and 2019, then this is what has to happen.

There is the possibility that after his sabbatical Pocock might take the money in Japan or France rather than come back to Australia. Pocock has expressed the view that sometime in his career he would like to play rugby as a professional overseas.

The complication here for the ARU (and for Pocock) if Pocock does remain overseas after his study year is that he does not qualify for Wallabies selection under the Giteau 60/7 rule. From his first representation for the Wallabies in 2008 up to the 2015 World Cup final, Pocock has played 55 Tests for Australia, some five Tests short of the Giteau Rule mark.

According to ARU chief executive Bill Pulver: “Clearly David Pocock is one of the world’s best players, if not the world’s best player, so suffice to say we are very eager to keep him in Australian rugby.”

We need to subject this sort of extravagant praise with some reality.

Pocock is a very good loose forward. He has played some terrific games for the Wallabies, notably the quarter-final against the Springboks in the 2011 World Cup.

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Pocock, also, played splendidly in last year’s World Cup, although he was outplayed by the All Blacks loose forwards in the final.

The argument can be made, too, that the current No.8s for New Zealand, Italy, France, England, South Africa and Japan are better players right now in this position than Pocock.

And if you are looking at Pocock at No.7, then Michael Hooper, Liam Gill and George Smith are three Australians who are right now as good in this position as Pocock.

Pocock has two great strengths to his game: he is incredibly strong over the tackled ball and he is a superb tackler. These are great strengths and they make Pocock a formidable player when play is running his way.

However, he contributes very little to the lineout as a jumper (unlike Hooper). He rarely influences play on the wider areas of the field (Hooper/Gill). He isn’t particularly effective as a runner or passer (Smith).

There is the other consideration, too, to all of this. How likely is Pocock to last through to the 2019 Rugby World Cup without a major injury?

If I were in Pulver’s chair, I would try to encourage Pocock to come back to Australian rugby after his sabbatical. But I would insist that any rugby he played in 2017 is confined to university rugby only. And I would not engage in a bidding war with Japan or France for his services.

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To be honest, Pocock will be playing in his third Rugby World Cup if he gets through to 2019. It is most unlikely that he will be the force in Japan that he was in New Zealand (2011) or England (2016).

The Wallabies should be looking to Hooper, McMahon (particularly) and Butler for 2019.

A Wallabies back row in the next World Cup, after all, is likely to be confronted with, say, an All Blacks back row squad loaded with young guns like Sam Cane, Ardie Savea and Akira Ioane.

One of the weaknesses of Australian rugby in the last ten years has been an inability for talented players to kick on and become absolutely world class in their play. Only a handful of Australian players in this time (Adam Ashley-Cooper comes to mind as an example of a complete, world-class player) have really come through to best-in-the-world status.

Pocock deserves consideration as a great player. But the ARU has to realise that he represents the past of Australian rugby.

Hooper, McMahon, Butler and others with potential to come through (if given their chance and good coaching) represent the present and future of the Wallabies.

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