Blood's thicker than water as Bath prop Beno Obano tells cousin Maro Itoje about his many career setbacks
Bath prop Beno Obano has opened up on the Maro Itoje Pearl Conversations podcast about the spiral of events and injuries he has encountered in order to reach the stage he is at now in his career. The two players, who are actually cousins, discussed everything from their rugby careers to their childhood holidays. They also shared their experiences in the professional rugby environment being British-Nigerian.
Obano explained how he keeps to himself in what is a different culture to what he is used to, having come “from a Nigerian household where if it’s any sport at all it’s football, if it’s not football then it’s books”. The Bath prop also spoke at length about the obstacles he has had to overcome throughout his career in terms of injuries and the path that has led him to the cusp of the England squad.
The first major setback the 25-year-old suffered was while he was still at school in London and part of the Wasps academy. He said on the podcast: “I was playing for my 1st XV at the time. I was 16, so I was still in year eleven playing for the 1st XV and in the last minute of the game I went for a jackal and the ground just went underneath me.
“I’ve done the splits and torn my hamstring. Obviously, at the time you don’t know anything about injuries, I was just thinking, ‘I’ve pulled it’, I just thought it was okay and I’ll be back in a week or two.”
The loosehead had Wasps training on the afternoon of the injury and he recalls that his hamstring reacted in such a way that it “has never been the same since. ‘Til this day, ’til this running session I did this morning, it’s never been the same since”.
Blood is thicker than water ?? This week I'm joined by my cousin, @EnglandRugby and @bathrugby Prop @ObanoB, for the 5th episode of #PearlConversations. Click here to listen in full https://t.co/jgbfnWVx3A ? pic.twitter.com/2RE5Sht9Dm
— Maro Itoje (@maroitoje) July 28, 2020
This injury ultimately meant the prop was fast-tracked to the England U16s camp without going through the regional stages, yet he “couldn’t run at all” and was subsequently sent home due to a lack of fitness. Despite missing out on the under-16s, he later made the England U18s squad only to play at hooker, which both he and Itoje regaled was hampered by his throwing.
The next setback was after signing a contract with Wasps where he had a scan on a back injury that had been bothering him. This revealed his back was fractured, which meant he missed “the majority of the season”. He said: “I was learning how to run again properly. This was all happening at 19 and I don’t think people understand – when you’re 18, 19 you can’t fully comprehend injuries and what it takes to return from them.”
After leaving Wasps, Obano was offered an opportunity to play an A league game. “I trained for Bath for a week and then went and played in that game and lasted 18 minutes. They dragged me off after 18 minutes. I hadn’t played rugby in a year and I must have been about 126kgs.”
Nonetheless, Mike Ford gave Obano the opportunity to take part in the pre-season at Bath, which he said was “the hardest I’ve ever done in my life”. He was offered a contract after that and spent the season on loan at Coventry. It was during Todd Blackadder’s second season in charge at The Rec in 2017/18 where the imposing prop finally announced himself, emerging on the radar of England head coach Eddie Jones.
However, this progress was yet again curtailed by a devastating knee injury in May 2018 while with England where he “tore every ligament” in his knee. While that was his most recognised setback to date, Obano also described how he had suffered a knee subluxation earlier that year with Bath which meant he did not take part in the England training camp ahead of the Six Nations.
These experiences throughout his career have given him a cautious approach to rehabbing and dealing with injuries, leading him to trust what and who he knows. He said: “Because of my hamstring I don’t trust physios that much, so I don’t trust what they say. But I have a good friend of mine called Keir Wenham-Flatt. He works in college football now in America and if I had an issue I would always call him. That was important.
“So the physios would suggest something and I’d call people to make sure what I’m doing is correct. Then all you have to do is make a good plan and just stick at it, be consistent with it and that’s basically what I did. I just trusted the people that I knew and the physios that I knew that I trusted, not just the club physios, and basically created a plan with them and then followed that. I remember I’d get in so many arguments with my physio because they would tell me to do stuff I’d refuse to do. But it worked and I got back in nine months.”
His knee injury quashed any hopes of competing for a World Cup 2019 place, but Obano has been ever-present for Bath since his return. An injury to Mako Vunipola during this year’s Six Nations saw him called into the England training camp once again, but he remained behind Joe Marler and Ellis Genge in the pecking order and is still waiting for his first cap.
He added that it “weighs on [him] quite a bit” that he has not yet played for England, particularly as his cousin plays so often, and he outlined his determination to be selected by Jones in the future.
Heck of a lot of ability in this XV https://t.co/LkligKBuLd
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 8, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
No Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
3 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
3 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
54 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
54 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
3 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
54 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
54 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
54 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
18 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. All the Kiwis sticking up for this unprincipled individual because they can't accept justified criticism, he has zero credibility or integrity. Those praising him are a joke.
18 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
54 Go to comments