John O'Sullivanhears from All Blacks forwards coach Steve Hansen why Brad Thorn is still going strong
IN THE lexicon of New Zealand rugby, sentiment might only register as an occasional footnote. Brad Thorn will win his 50th cap for New Zealand against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday but the milestone won’t occupy his thoughts until he’s cradling a beer in the aftermath.
At 35 years old he’s packed so much into a sporting life, not alone representing Australia at rugby league but apart from multiple honours with the Brisbane Broncos, including four NRL Grand Finals, he was voted in the top 20 players in the history of the sport during two separate spells in league.
Born in New Zealand, he left for Australia at nine years of age but on switching codes from league to union he fulfilled am ambition to play for the All Blacks in 2003. Two years later he elected to return to league before resuming his union career at the end of the 2007 NRL season.
It’s fair to say he could have amassed over a century of Test caps for the All Blacks if his sporting passion had been one dimensional. His Damascene conversion from party animal to the Christian faith in 2003 introduced a greater equanimity to his life away from the pitch.
Thorn is an exceptional player. Given the production line of talent that emanates from New Zealand commandeering a starting position, in the secondrow, on the All Blacks in your mid-30s doesn’t require further elaboration.
Forwards coach Steve Hansen enthused: “He’s (Thorn) just like fine wine, he’s gotten better with age. He has the attitude that he wants to be there. The reason you stop playing is that you lose the motivation to get up and do the work from Sunday to Friday: Saturday is the easy part, really. It’s the fun part. He’s still got the motivation, still driven to work hard.
“He’s one of the fittest guys in the team. Age is not the barrier; what’s the barrier is your mind. If your mind can allow you to go through the pain and do the work that you have to do, then you’re fine. He is still really keen on that. He loves the team atmosphere, loves being in a sporting group.
“Basically he’s done it all his life and I think he’d really miss it. From the age of 15 or 16 he’s been involved in a team sport and it’s been a big part of it for the last 20 years.”
Hansen agrees Thorn can serve as an example of what can be achieved by dint of hard work and dedication; a sort of poster boy for someone broaching – it’d better be out of Thorn’s earshot probably – the veteran stage.
Hansen agreed: “I think there is no doubt about that as he’s committed himself to the game in New Zealand and got the rewards because of that. If his body holds together over the next 12 months then I know the World Cup is a big carrot for him.”
If it was possible to hold a looking glass up to Thorn and identify his mirror image in the Ireland team then it would probably be Paul O’Connell. The Lions captain continues his rehabilitation process, his absence recognised in the opposing dressingroom.
Hansen elaborated: “He’s a huge loss, the go-to man at lineout time and definitely the leader in the forward pack. If you took Richie McCaw out of our side, you’d lose something. In saying that, it’s a chance for someone else and they’ll want to step up and do the job and it’s been a while without him so they should be looking to the other leaders around that pack. It’s a pretty experienced pack on paper.”
One exception could be Devin Toner, who won his first cap against Samoa and could be handed a second when Declan Kidney announces the Ireland team at lunch-time today. At 6ft 10ins it’d be difficult to hide but Hansen has already scanned the footage as he would do when preparing his pack for any opposition.
“He’s (Toner) a big man and like any young lock what you see in the beginning isn’t what you get in the end. It’s having that ability to visualise where he is going to be able to get to as an athlete. He’s 6ft 10 inches so you don’t expect him to be a gazelle do you? But at the same time, you look at the boy from South Africa, (Andries) Bekker; he’s around the same height, a gazelle and a good athlete.
“Sometimes, early in their career we judge them too hard, those big, tall boys.”
Thorn has that X factor; Toner will learn more about his DNA for Test rugby after Saturday’s audition.
