Adam Thomson reinvigorated for fresh attack on Super Rugby with Queensland Reds
THE culture shock of rugby life in Japan has been the tonic to reinvigorate former All Black Adam Thomson for his fresh attack on Super Rugby with the Reds.
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THE culture shock of rugby life in Japan has been the perfect tonic to reinvigorate former All Black Adam Thomson for his fresh attack on Super Rugby with the Queensland Reds next season.
The 112kg backrower could prove the most influential import of the season if he injects the same flair, hard-edged ball-running, lineout acumen and canny breakdown skills that exemplified his dominant years with Otago’s Highlanders.
There are few signings in Super Rugby that have the potential to change the fortunes of an entire team.
Thomson, 32, is definitely one because so many of his attributes fill the desperate deficiencies exposed when this year’s Reds team limped home in 13th.
More than the signings of backs Karmichael Hunt or James O’Connor, Thomson is the reason the Reds can jump back into finals contention because of the authority a 29-Test All Black adds to the pack.
The signing of Thomson has certainly helped drive the early sales of 2015 Reds memberships which already top 17,000 and again outstrip the Brisbane Broncos.
Thomson’s mind is in the right place for the challenge because two seasons with Canon Eagles in Japan’s top league has reignited him after a decade in Kiwi rugby.
“With the massive five-month pre-seasons of Japanese rugby I’ve been able to physically get the body right and slipping into a totally different culture has freshened me up mentally,” Thomson said from Tokyo.
“I’ve got the hunger and passion for the higher level still.”
Thomson isn’t planning to speak to Daniel Braid, the former All Blacks flanker who excelled at the Reds in 2009-10, to gauge what he got from the Queensland experience but that the marriage clicked.
“I’m obviously well aware of what he achieved. It worked for him at the Reds,” Thomson said.
“The Reds are a good fit because I admire the high-paced attacking style they play which is what I enjoy as a player.
“Playing the Australian-style was a major pull and just gravitating to something different. Taking the step to Japan started that whole thing about feeling I could explore new opportunities outside New Zealand.”
Thomson happily admits there have been moments where he’s felt like actor Bill Murray’s character as a foreigner at sea with Japanese culture in the film Lost In Translation.
“As a fun thing last Christmas, my girlfriend and I actually stayed in the same hotel as the setting for the movie and checked out the New York Bar and Grill where the Bill Murray character spends his time,” Thomson said.
“Karaoke is pretty big here but the boys on my team are all pretty awful, me included.”
Depending on the progress of the Eagles in the knockout stages in Japan, Thomson could arrive at the Reds from Japan in early February just as influential South African backrow recruit Jacques Potgieter did for the NSW Waratahs this year.
Even with a short preparation, Thomson will have a role in the Super Rugby opener against the ACT Brumbies in Canberra on February 13.
Originally published as Adam Thomson reinvigorated for fresh attack on Super Rugby with Queensland Reds
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