Rugby: Pete Samu a man of courage and few words

Courage, it seems, runs pretty much right through him new Wallabies recruit Pete Samu

Wallabies recruit Pete Samu hasn’t taken the comfortable route in his rugby career

Those familiar with Queensland coach Brad Thorn’s reluctance to talk to the media would have noted new Wallaby Pete Samu’s reticence as well and would have thought, “Hmmm, Crusaders.”

That’s the common factor in their background. It turns out that in Crusaders-land, only the coach and captain speak to the media and that suits Samu — who is neither — right down to the ground. It also explains why he would rather have done almost anything else but speak to the Australian media yesterday about his welcome — if for a time disputed — selection in the Wallabies side to play Ireland over the next three weekends.

As it turned out, however, he plucked up the courage and spoke of his career. Courage, it seems, runs right through him. The Melbourne-born 26-year-old could have taken the comfortable route in his rugby career, building on the two years he spent playing Shute Shield in Sydney with Randwick. Heaven knows, playing for Randwick is the most well-trodden path to Wallabies selection that there has ever been.

But after a stint with St Ives in England, he began playing for Waimea Old Boys on the other side of the ditch and from there he was chosen first in the Tasman side. Then he was picked for the Crusaders Knights development team, where he was named player of the year in 2015, before being promoted to their star-studded Super Rugby side in 2016. And all along, his rugby knowledge was growing exponentially.

“Definitely being at Randwick — my lineout, scrum and defence weren’t really one of my main focuses,” Samu told rugby.com.au yesterday. “I just got better at it over there (in New Zealand) and I definitely think being over there has really helped my game. It’s probably been the biggest reason that I’ve been able to come back home.”

Certainly they were the reason Michael Cheika — a Randwick product — put Samu on his wishlist, with the Brumbies first to seize the day by signing him for the next two seasons. “It’s going to be quite tough to leave the Crusaders with what they have done for me and the way they’ve been going but I’m pretty excited for that fresh challenge,” he said. “When I made the decision to go over there, I never thought I’d be back and be back here as part of the Wallabies squad.”

If there is one thing Wallabies captain Michael Hooper wants to see from his fresh-faced “newbie”, it is excitement at being included in the Wallabies and certainly he has seen that from Samu.

“He is stoked to be here and everyone else is stoked to have him,” said Hooper. “We saw all this stuff going on in the background last weekend and then he rolled in on Sunday. How good! We’d be silly not to pick his brains a little bit as well.”

Samu has to be a little discrete because once the June Tests are over he has to report back to the Crusaders for the remainder of the regular season. And, of course, it being the Crusaders, the season will only really be starting for him then as the team from Christchurch goes about the familiar task of cleaning up in the Super Rugby playoffs. Only then can he tell his Australian teammates everything he has learned at the club which is, without question, the greatest and most successful in southern hemisphere rugby.

First, he has a Wallabies side to crack and it won’t be easy. Caleb Timu fashioned a brilliant job application for a starting Wallabies backrow position with his cameo off the bench for the Reds against the Waratahs. “He definitely swung the momentum there with a couple of carries and I know that a couple of our (Waratahs) boys felt the other side of that,” said Hooper.

And then there is the option of playing Lukhan Tui on the side of the scrum, alongside Hooper and David Pocock. “I’ve been a big fan of Lukhan for a long time, not only for his size but the way he uses it,” said the Wallabies captain.

Still, whether or not he wins at the selection table this time around, there is no doubt Pete Samu is here for the long haul.