Gerry Thornleytalks to Leinster's Nathan Hines, who rates Sunday's Heineken Cup opponents Clermont as one of the best teams in France
IT’S CUSTOMARY for Australian imports to bemoan the weather hereabouts, but prior to Leinster taking a coach out to Skerries for the one pitch they could find for training purposes yesterday, Nathan Hines was not of a mind to complain about the Baltic conditions of late.
He’s a long way from Wagga Wagga now, though, after seven years in Scotland and four in France, and now in his second season in Leinster, this nomadic, Aussie-born, Ireland-based, Scottish and Lions lock has long since become acquainted with European conditions.
“It doesn’t worry me at all,” he says. “What can you do about it, to be honest? Make sure you’ve got the heating on.”
In the second of a two-year deal with Leinster, he turned 34 last week and would like to extend his stay. Despite a typically busy time of things lately, having come on for the second half of Scotland’s thrashing at home to the All Blacks, and then starting the wins over South Africa and Samoa, Hines was still itching to get back into the Leinster swing of things.
Prior to that he’d missed only one Leinster match (away to former club Edinburgh) due to a broken toe, before returning from the bench for the comeback draw at the Scarlets last Friday.
On returning he would have found a Leinster squad decimated by injuries to Brian O’Driscoll, Luke Fitzgerald and Rob Kearney.
He maintains morale is unaffected and expresses belief in the replacements – most likely Eoin O’Malley and Fergus McFadden – will slot in at outside centre and wing alongside Gordon D’Arcy, Shane Horgan and Isa Nacewa – but admits it adds responsibility on to the other leadership figures in the squad.
Nothing has happened since the draw was made to render these Clermont games anything less than critical.
“They’ve come off the back of beating Toulouse last week which was a big game for them, because they’re not where they’d like to be in the league.
“You look at the game we had against them (in the quarter-finals) last year, and if it wasn’t for Brock James missing some penalties we would have been put out of the final stages.”
In addition to Joe Schmidt’s insights into Clermont as their former backs’ coach of the last three years – “Obviously it’s a little bit helpful when your coach used to be their coach, but he can’t hold our hands out there,” says Hines – his own four years at Perpignan makes playing French clubs, especially away form home, “a little less alien” for him.
He loved his time at Perpignan. “It was tough rugby. I learned pretty quickly that it’s tough every week and every team has a good forward pack. Usually the way a season goes for a Top 14 team is how they’re driven round the field by their halves, but every week is tough up front.”
Perpignan won in Clermont in his first season there.
“Everyone was really, really happy, and I sort of didn’t get it at the time. It was the first time they’d won there for ages and I don’t think they’ve won there since. But I loved the whole experience, really, even if it included crazy stuff like travelling to Biarritz by bus on the day of the match,” recalls Hines with a chuckle, though he stresses the mentality toward away fixtures has changed.
As a Lion, he missed out on what would have been a fond farewell to the Catalans when they beat Clermont in the final to claim the Bouclier de Brennus. “It was something I couldn’t avoid really. I wanted to go on a Lions tour and I wanted to play in a Top 14 final, but I couldn’t do both.”
Ironically, he was rooming with Stephen Jones, who had spent two seasons at Clermont, when the final was taking place. “As soon as we got in to Durban that night we watched the second half together because it was live on television and I was delighted to see them win the Bouclier.”
Hines rates Clermont and Toulouse as the two most dangerous and complete sides in France.
You ask him what questions, first and foremost, Clermont will ask of Leinster and, without hesitation, he says: “The physical questions, basically. Obviously we’ve got to make sure our defence is watertight because they’ve got some very good attackers and if we don’t stop their physical onslaught in the forwards it’s going to make it very difficult to stop them getting on a roll and unleash their attacking power.
“So get our defence right first and make sure we nullify their attack. But if we go out and play the way we can we’re going to be in with a good shout of winning. We’ve just got to put ourselves in that position.”
Where Hines fits in will be interesting to see. In addition to Devin Toner, Schmidt’s options have been strengthened by the gradual return from injury of Leo Cullen, Ed O’Donoghue and Trevor Hogan in recent weeks, but it’s hard to see Hines (along with Richardt Strauss, arguably one of Leinster’s two best players this season) not being involved.
Since two serious injuries took 18 months out of his early career, the 6ft 7in, 18st 4 lb (111kg) lock has (touch wood) shown himself to be notably durable, and last season Michael Cheika employed his experience, savvy of French rugby and hard-nosed physicality to beef up the backrow in Brive.
“I’m stubborn, let’s put it that way,” he admits good-naturedly. But he seems to enjoy the physical stuff.
“I think that’s one thing a player can control. He can’t control how a game’s going to be played, but you can control your physicality and your attitude.
“Simple things aren’t always easy, but it’s a simple thing to do.”
