The question came at the end of his group interview. Simon Zebo was asked would he still love the game if he wasn't able to play it as he wanted? He paused for a moment and gave a one-word answer.
“No,” he smiled. “No.”
And therein lies Simon Zebo. Maybe it’s the French blood in him. Whatever. He loves playing rugby, with the emphasis on playing, and making things happen, be it counter-attacking, taking an attacking line or giving a long cut-out pass, like for Felix Jones’s try against Wales in August, or making an offload out of the tackle.
Ah, the offload.
When Brian O'Driscoll intimated on Newstalk last week that Irish players are fearful of offloading, he cited the example of Zebo's attempted offload against Australia in November 2014 which led to a try by Nick Phipps. O'Driscoll admitted he wasn't party to any post-match analysis of the incident and Zebo maintained Joe Schmidt did not castigate him for a turnover which let Australia back into the game.
Skip passes
“It’s the risk involved and I’m happy to take those risks. It’s part of my game. I get excited at those opportunities and those possibilities because if you don’t buy a ticket you can’t win the lotto so there’s no point playing conservatively and going into your shells, that’s my opinion. I didn’t get ‘effed’ out of it so I’m happy to continue playing that way.”
Indeed, in all of this, Zebo maintains that players “have to live in the game and think in the game” rather than think of the consequences of the video review, and that the Irish players are encouraged to take risks.
“If it’s on you’re allowed to have a go and I think some players go with that a lot and some players play to their own strengths and do otherwise but collectively we’re given licence to go out and play. I don’t think you’d see Mike Ross throwing skip passes or anything but at the same time we’re given licence to play heads-up rugby and hopefully we do that this weekend because that’s the way it looks like the game is going and the best teams are playing the best rugby.”
In Ireland’s opening game, Zebo’s late entries into the line and lines of running from fullback tested the Welsh defence, but the somewhat erratic nature of his performance can in part be attributed to the leg knock he suffered early in that match and which ruled him out of the trip to Paris.
“I picked up a knock pretty early in the game, with my first carry actually, and it just ballooned up after the game and I was struggling to walk.”
With Keith Earls back in the frame as well as Rob Kearney, if not the unfortunate Dave Kearney, Zebo is one of six outside backs vying for three starting places or a spot on the bench against England, with his versatility liable to land him the latter.
Ask him whether he regards himself as a fullback or winger,and he says: "Both I suppose. I am happy to play either. It is probably easier for me to go roaming and looking for the ball at number 15 as opposed to wing. So my preferred position, I am still undecided, but I am probably leaning towards '15' the more I play there. So, the more time I get to play '15', whether it is here or Munster, the more comfortable I will be there and I find it very exciting."
Zebo's was one of the more protracted contract renewals but, better late than never, he has recommitted to Munster and Ireland along with Conor Murray and Earls. "There was interest from other clubs and those things can delay signing the deal. I was just happy with the way it turned out."
