Johnson hopes World Cup can finally write off his debt with the bank of mum and dad
Sam Johnson hopes to finally write off his debt with the bank of mum and dad at the World Cup. The Glasgow centre will be forever grateful for the endless hours put in by his parents Peter and Leanne while he was a youngster as they ensured he made the most of his talents.
Whether it be the time given up to ferry him to and from training sessions or the financial cost of paying for expensive trips abroad, the 26-year-old knows the support he received was worth its weight in gold. Now the Australia-born tartan convert – who qualified last year after chalking up three years with Warriors – is looking forward to settling what he owes his family as they make the trip of a lifetime to see him in action in Japan.
The Queenslander said: “My mum and dad are going to head out for the first couple of weeks then my girlfriend Eilidh is flying out for the later stages. This tournament is not just an experience for me, it’s an experience for them as well. They are really looking forward to getting out to Japan.
“I see what I’m doing not only as something for me to enjoy but a journey that the people close to me can experience too. Going to the World Cup is payback for them. When you are a young kid, you rely on your parents to drive you to training.
“While you’re running about, they are sitting in the car for a couple of hours at a time. When you get older there is a financial aspect too. There were trips away and rugby tours to be paid for. So it’s great that I can repay them in a way of giving them the chance to go to Japan with me.”
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The family have already put the miles in making the journey from down under to Murrayfield to see their son make his debut during this year’s Six Nations. The emotion of seeing those he holds dearest in the stands helped produce a supercharged display against Italy. And he hopes having them close again will produce a similar result when Scotland kick-off their tournament against Ireland in Yokohama on September 22.
“I remember making my debut against Italy and seeing my family as well as my girlfriend’s family in the crowd,” he said. “It struck me then that I wasn’t just doing this for myself. It’s for your family and your country. That’s a pretty special thing and the emotion really drives you on.”
Johnson’s path to the Test stage has had more twists and turns than the average family soap opera. He struggled to settle in Glasgow at first following his move from Queensland Reds in 2015. After rediscovering his best form for Dave Rennie’s squad, he was rewarded with his first Scotland start against the Azzurri earlier this year. But after featuring in defeats to Ireland and France he was left in the stand as the Scots slumped to a third straight defeat against Wales in Edinburgh.
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However, he was back in Townsend’s team for the trip to Twickenham and played a vital role – as well as scoring his first international try – in the thrilling 38-38 draw with England. He has already been tipped to start in midfield alongside Duncan Taylor but, given the roller-coaster ride he has been on to this point, Johnson is refusing to take his place for granted.
He said: “There was no better test for me to show I was ready for a World Cup than proving myself on the Six Nations stage. Having those experiences before now has been invaluable. There are four quality centres and we’re all chomping at the bit to get out there.
“Whoever ends up being the starting combination will have had to work hard to grab that slot. There’s a pretty good blend there and real quality, which you can see from the fact that top players like Huw Jones and Rory Hutchinson missed out. Now it’s up to the coaching staff to see what works best.”
– Press Association
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Well you’ve made a proper tit of yourself, haven’t you! 😂
173 Go to commentsBen it's beyond their comprehension-
202 Go to commentsThanks Sam. Interesting read. Harder or easier for Parling to come into a completely new setup where performance was abysmal last time out? I’d suggest easier to be better but, as you suggest, will be a lot to do with how much latitude he’s granted. Hopefully all he needs. With hybrids like Holloway, Hannigan, Swinton and Leota as options at 6 we have the basics for a strong lineout. BPA returning means we have good options at 2 also with Faessler, Porecki and Uelese, although Jordan is a scrumming beast rather than a dart thrower. I’m typically a pessimist or realist but that’s never applied to the Wallabies
1 Go to commentsMad how this somehow contained absolutely zero information.
1 Go to commentsI’m looking forward to attending the Twickenham match, I don’t think it will have a bearing on the outcome of the grand prize itself but it will tell us more about each teams’ preparation and game plan. It’s hard to look past one of the big four (I’m including Canada) lifting the trophy in 2025 but sport is a curious thing, there will still be twists and turns in road ahead.
2 Go to commentsThe better side seems to be the losing side a lot these days. As far as narrative goes. Must be the big emergent culture of “participation awards” that have emerged in nanny states. ”It looked like New Zealand would take the game from there but lapses in execution let South Africa get back into the game. New Zealand’s goal kickers left five points out there, including a very make-able penalty on the stroke of half”. Sounds like a chronic problem… I wonder how the better team has lapses in concentration and execution? Or are those not important factors in the grand scheme of total performances? In 2023, the ABs at least didn’t give up a lead to lose. They just couldn’t execute to get the points and take the lead. This Baby AB result points to a choke - letting the game slip through your fingers. In the words of the great Ricky Bobby’s dad - “If you’re not 1st you’re last!” Loosely translated - if you didn’t win, you’re a loser.
9 Go to commentsWith Stuart Lancaster at the helm, Racing 92 looks more and more a mercenaries club like Toulon some years ago and they are not even performing despite all the money on offer.
4 Go to commentsCouple of things BS missed: wind was behind the Baby Blacks in the first half. Baby Boks got points from a scrum penalty in the final quarter against this ‘dominant pack’, and left three points on the park after a missed penalty.
9 Go to commentsSensible thoughts on this, Brett. Also worth considering we’ve sold 60k tickets for a game between the Rebels and the Lions next year. Got to be roughly $10m in ticket and game day revenue there.
5 Go to commentsUnsuccessful bitter ex Ulster player taking a pop shot at a side that isn't including his consistently poor mates up north
4 Go to commentsHis decision to play in France isn’t a petulant decision as this article suggests. I reckon that France is the perfect place to demonstrate that he can mix it in those battles Rassie references. It’s a good decision to try get into the squad. My personal opinion is that he wins more battles than he loses. I don’t have Rassie’s stats machine behind me, but Daymian’s is so strong moving through traffic and in the rip.
4 Go to commentsWow! Argie forward dominance is something I have not read in years….
1 Go to commentsIs the ‘snub’ really why he is leaving? He hasn’t said that has he? You don’t have to stay in SA to play for the Boks, so it’s not that he’s giving up on trying to get into the squad as the case would be in, say, England or New Zealand. Rassie made it clear that the early camps won’t feature all the players to play for the Boks this year so I can’t imagine Dayimani was too offended by being overlooked this time. It just seems like a sensationalist angle to take for a story without really knowing the player’s intentions.
4 Go to commentsWell, it is easily one of the best Irish sides, it’s just that their historical standard is very low.
4 Go to commentsThe Irish side is good. They have lost 2 games in the last 23 tests. In the last 12 months they have have a 60% win rate against the top 5 sides in the world. Over the same period south africa have a 67% win rate against the top 5 teams, and New Zealand are at 40%.
4 Go to commentsOnly 1247 days until RWC 2027 starts Bin Smuth🤣Can’t wait to see how unhinged you’re still gonna get between now & then
202 Go to commentsany chance either team will improve on their u20 world cup performances this time around? I assume both sides will be deeply disappointed with how things went.
6 Go to commentsAnother poor articles by a poor journo, nothing new from Ben, at least you are consistently bad lol, geez I will try and watch the match later, clearly Benny was only looking to one end of the pitch, hard to tell whom the Baby Blacks were playing if it wasn’t in the header 😄😄
9 Go to commentsNz should have won. I didn't watch the game, but the ref was at fault and the bounce of the ball and the Bokke used the Bomb squad and the Bokke slow the game down and the Bokke scrum. They should remove the scrum. The Bokke are to strong. Not fair. Nz should have won
9 Go to commentsProbably the worst article on a rugby match I have ever read
202 Go to comments