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How the Crusaders and Canterbury helped shape uncapped Wallabies prospect

By Alex McLeod
(Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

When he makes his inevitable test debut for the Wallabies against England over the coming weeks, Nick Frost will have the Crusaders and Canterbury to thank for his rise to international rugby.

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The 22-year-old lock is in line to feature for the Wallabies when they host the English in a three-test series in July after being named as one of six debutants in Dave Rennie’s squad earlier this month.

Frost’s selection came on the back of some impressive performances for the Brumbies en route to their semi-final finish in Super Rugby Pacific.

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A member of the Brumbies for three seasons, Frost only signed with the Canberra-based franchise after having previously spent time in New Zealand as a development player with the Crusaders and Canterbury.

Making the unorthodox decision to move to Christchurch from Australia immediately after finishing high school, Frost was part of the Canterbury and Crusaders youth systems between 2018 and 2019.

The young second rower turned out for the Crusaders Knights development team and Canterbury U19 side during his time in the Garden City before returning to Australia after signing a deal with the Brumbies ahead of the 2020 Super Rugby season.

Two years later, Frost is primed to make the next step in his budding playing career, but he hasn’t forgotten how influential his time across the ditch was in his progression to becoming a Wallaby.

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“I went there straight after school. It was an unreal experience. Outside of footy, too, living out of home, a new country, new friends, etc,” Frost told media from Wallabies camp on the Sunshine Coast on Friday.

“Trying to cook for the house is a bit interesting. We were pretty young, but it was good fun, a great experience.

“The footy was unbelievable, really enjoyed it over there, and my main decision for leaving from that was to come back and have a crack at the Wallabies.

“I was pretty happy with my decision, and went back to the Brums and have been loving it there, and now I’ve got a few more years there.”

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As he alluded to, Frost will stay on board with the Brumbies for the foreseeable future, inking a three-year contract extension with the franchise in May after being pursued by the Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights.

The Japan Rugby League One powerhouses were hot on the heels of Frost, who revealed that “it was a pretty done deal” to join the Wild Knights before being convinced to remain in Australia and stay eligible for Wallabies selection.

Among those who persuaded Frost to stay put include Wallabies coaches Dave Rennie and Dan McKellar, both of whom were eager to keep the youngster on deck given Australia’s thin stocks at lock.

Touted as a player with high potential, Rugby Australia’s retention of Frost was universally welcomed by those in his homeland, but the man himself detailed just how close he came to jetting abroad for a second time in his career.

“It was a pretty done deal. We’d got all our stuff done, which is a lot in the works to get up to that stage, so that was a big thing,” Frost said.

“The decision after that, there was a lot of phone calls and trying to work out ways and different things, but at the end of the day, they [the Wild Knights] were supportive as well.

“They were obviously disappointed from their end, but they were supportive that it was what I wanted to do.”

At the crux of Frost’s decision to stay put was his desire to play for the Wallabies, meaning his contractual backflip looks set to pay dividends when England come to town within the next fortnight.

“Obviously it was what I always wanted to do,” Frost said about the prospect of playing for the Wallabies.

“It was a pretty hard decision at the start to make my decision to go overseas, and then, similarly enough, it was quite easy to – when I got an opportunity – to stay, to be honest.

“They presented some facts and pictures and talked it through and everyone was pretty understanding. There was a lot of phone calls back and forward. Pretty happy in the end.”

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Jon 8 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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j
john 10 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.

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