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Hooper masked feelings ahead of shock Wallabies walkout

By AAP
(Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Coach Dave Rennie has revealed skipper Michael Hooper had masked his feelings in the lead-up to his shock withdrawal from the Wallabies’ Rugby Championship Test against Argentina 24 hours before kick-off.

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Hooper will miss two Tests against the Pumas after he announced he wasn’t in the right mindset to lead or represent the country and would instead fly home.

A mainstay of the national team for the past decade playing 121 Tests, flanker Hooper had been captain a record 68 times and appeared an indefatigable figure through the sport’s lows.

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Rennie said there was no inkling of Hooper’s personal struggle as they prepared for the Mendoza Test on Sunday morning (AEST) until the 30-year-old sought help from the Wallabies team doctor Sharron Flahive, who put the wheels in motion for his return home.

He will travel back to Sydney with his Waratahs teammate Dave Porecki, who is unavailable for both Tests due to a training head knock.

Rennie said it was a courageous decision by father-of-one Hooper, normally a very private character, to admit he needed help.

“Nothing that was evident to us in how he trained – how he contributed around the team, around leadership was excellent – but clearly he’s been struggling a bit and masking that pretty well,” Rennie told reporters from Argentina on Saturday (AEST).

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“Obviously he’s been able to suppress things over the past handful of weeks and so we certainly weren’t aware of anything but he’s such a professional and he was able to get on and do the job.

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“He addressed the team today which took an enormous amount of courage to let them know that he’s not OK and that he felt it was best for himself and for the team that he gets home.

“It was an easy decision to let him go home where he will get plenty of support around him.”

Fellow Test centurion James Slipper will captain the side, while Fraser McReight will replace Hooper in the No.7 jersey to earn h is third Test cap.

Rennie said that McReig ht was match-ready after recently playing in the Australia A Pacific Cup series.

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“He’s had three 80-minute performances so conditioning-wise it’s not an issue,” Rennie said.

“They use the same structures as us and he has been in our group in the past and so he’ll fit seamlessly.”

Hooper skippered Australia during their recent series loss to England which raised some questions about whether he was still the best man to lead the Wallabies.

Assistant coach Scott Wisemantel said at the time that Hooper was “adored” by his teammates.

“You look at his position, how other teams rate him, he’s world-class,” Wismantel said.

“He’s a strong leader. He’s a great listener.”

Retired cross-code star Karmichael Hunt said his former teammate was in the top five greatest players across the three football codes he played.

“His courage, toughness, dependability and care for this mates is what stands out above all … wishing him nothing but the best,” Hunt tweeted.

The Wallabies, who have a World Cup in France next year, return to Australia for Rugby Championship Tests against South Africa and New Zealand beginning later this month.

Rennie said Hooper hadn’t given any indication regarding his playing future and they didn’t have a timeline for a return to action.

He praised his player for being a role model for men.

“It’s not uncommon in life, is it? It’s a cross-section of society and often men will say bugger all and suffer in silence so it took a lot of courage to address the group,” Rennie said.

“He has a huge amount of respect from everyone and we want to get him home and get him as much support as we can.”

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Jon 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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john 8 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

33 Go to comments
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Adrian 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

33 Go to comments
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