LONG READ World Cup Memories 2015 - Michael Hooper: 'There was no side we wanted to face in that final other than the All Blacks.'

When Michael Hooper looks back at his World Cup heroics in England in 2015, you can almost witness the competitive juices flowing, as he walks his dog, George, with the setting sun on a stretch of Sydney’s Northern Beaches.

After extolling the virtues of ‘a red-hot France’ in the Six Nations, he says for an intermittent period last year, he toyed with coming out of retirement and giving a home tournament run a shot.

The idea of ‘comeback’ didn’t last long, he smiles, ruefully. “There was a fleeting moment. I had the opportunity to play a bit in Japan last year and I got the bug. I thought, ‘could I get there, is it worth one last shot?’ I hadn’t played for 18 months but in a moment of clarity, I soon discounted the idea. They say the dog goes out of you and you do have to have a bit of mongrel to play. I decided I was more than happy to see some young, hungry players attempting to lift a World Cup!”

Roll back 11 years, and Hooper most definitely had that mongrel. Just 23, he formed a highly effective backrow combination with David Pocock, that saw the duo nicknamed ‘Pooper’ and along with the bearded blindside, Scott Fardy, they were instrumental in propelling the Wallabies all the way to the World Cup Final

With a straightforward t 28-13 win Fiji to start the campaign, Australia made light work of Uruguay with a comfortable 65-3 victory, before facing the tournament hosts England.

It was a fixture, Hooper says, that got the butterflies going.

“I’d played in 48 Tests by then, so I wasn’t a newbie, but I’ve never been more nervous going into a game. We’d watched Wales beating England, so we knew we had the opportunity to knock the home nation out. Whereas every other game had been in the daylight, this was different, with organisers making us wait in the tunnel before we went out for some fireworks. After a long day of waiting we went out and, thankfully, nailed it on the grandest stage.”

Bernard Foley and Kurtley Beale were magnificent, with Foley registering 28 points, including two tries, and despite being given a yellow card that saw him miss the next game against Wales, Hooper revelled in the occasion, especially with his English-born dad, David, in the crowd.

England had pulled it back to 20-13 on 70 minutes, with a try from Anthony Watson, before Owen Farrell was shown yellow for a high tackle. That dashed Stuart Lancaster’s side’s faint hopes, and Matt Giteau sealed the game with a late dive to score in the corner. “Dad moved out here in his mid-twenties and he’s an Aussie citizen now. Funnily enough, my middle name is Kent, but it’s unrelated to the fact he’s from Maidstone in Kent. Mum wanted to call me that as a first name, but my dad wasn’t having it. After the game, I remember going up and shaking his hand. He’s a staunch Australian fan but it was a really cool family moment.”

We were starting to feel good. We’d beaten the All Blacks in The Rugby Championship and only lost once that calendar year. Winning under those circumstances, it felt like we were on track.

Next up was Warren Gatland’s Wales, and Hooper, much to his frustration, had a watching brief. In an edgy game, five Bernard Foley penalties secured the win, but it was never comfortable.

“I was in the stands because I’d been suspended from the England game for taking out Mike Brown. I got penalised in-game and the judiciary gave me a week off. Sean McMahon started, Poey was at 8, Fards was at 6. Truth told, defence won us that game.”

Indeed, in the second-half, only a heroic Wallaby rearguard action saw them hold Wales up twice on the line, with Australia at one point down to 13 men. In a Herculean effort, seeing Beale and Adam Ashley Cooper chipping in with key turnovers, gave them a huge boost confidence going into the knockout stages.

“By then we were starting to feel good. We’d beaten the All Blacks in The Rugby Championship and only lost once that calendar year. Winning under those circumstances, it felt like we were on track. It was another big win chalked off. We thought, whatever’s being thrown at us, we can deal with.”

Hooper says credit must go to defence coach Nathan Grey for his meticulous preparation. “Being in the stands I could see how in tune the defence was. It was a great performance and Scotland were up next.”

The quarter-final at Twickenham started in bright sunshine but stormy clouds were soon to form. Australia led four tries to one, with an early Adam Ashley-Cooper try, a Drew Mitchell brace, and Hooper himself scoring after a driving maul, but they couldn’t shake off the unerring boot of Greig Laidlaw.

“I thought we were the better team by scoring more tries, but Scotland were being obdurate. They were staying in the fight, with penalties keeping them in touch.”

Then came the Tommy Seymour try and a biblical downpour, as the game ended in chaos and controversy. “Late on James Slipper, who went on to become the most capped Wallaby ever, threw a pass that was intercepted by Mark Bennett who scurried under the posts. On that walk back for kick-off, Skipps said to me, ‘Ah, mate, I’m going to be that guy who got the Wallabies dumped out of the World Cup. That’s going to be my legacy’. I remember thinking, this isn’t supposed to be how it ends, and when Craig Joubert blew up for a penalty with 38 seconds to go, Foles slotted it and the camera panned to Nicole Kidman in the crowd. It was a crazy few minutes, I’m like, ‘what on earth is going on’.’’

Those boys  [Giteau and Mitchell] were at Toulon and living this opulent Riviera lifestyle but they came back to try and win a World Cup. They put a lot of people on notice and drove standards up.

Deep into the tournament, Hooper says the squad could reflect on the bonds they had built. “Michael Cheika is an amazing coach and there were plenty leaders in that team. People like Wycliff Palu, who had to go home early through injury. Stephen Moore as captain and legends like Will Genia and Sekope Kepu, were all integral to our efforts.”

While Mitchell and Giteau got a lot attention because of the situation they’d been parachuted into, with the ‘Giteau’ 60-cap law seeing the playmaker return from the international wilderness, it was no PR exercise. “Those boys were at Toulon and living this opulent Riviera lifestyle but they came back to try and win a World Cup. They put a lot of people on notice and drove standards up.”

Next up were Daniel Hourcade’s Pumas in the semi-final. They had thrilled with their dashing play, led by Santiago Cordero and Juan Martin Gonzalez, but Hooper knew the Wallabies were on a roll. “Off the back Wales and Scotland game, there was never a thought that entered our heads that we were going to lose. That’s not arrogance, it was just confidence from a couple of seasons together.”

Things started well for Australia as Rob Simmons took an intercept and galloped under the stick after two minutes, and when Ashley-Cooper flew over after 10 minutes, the Wallabies were 14-3 up, before Ashley-Cooper scored another try before the break after a long, looping pass from Giteau. “Drew (Mitchell) had a proper day out and I remember Mario Ledesma, the decorated Argentina hooker who was on our coaching ticket, was hugely emotional. Honestly, it never felt like we were in too much trouble. As for Los Pumas, it was more proof of their improvement and today they are one of the best sides in the world.”

Even though Argentina pulled it back to 22-15 through the boot of Nicolas Sanchez, the game was sealed by Mitchell’s audacious break. “I think if you asked most people about that game, they’d remember that crazy run of Drew’s from left to right when he put AAC into the corner. I was running behind him and thinking, ‘where is he going?’ It was such a cool feeling to think we’d reached a World Cup final.”

With the intensity being ratcheted up, Hooper said there were certain squad members who lightened the mood. “It was full on, but every morning Drew made sure he gave the whole squad a kiss on both cheeks when he came into training. He was in full French mode and stuck to it for the entirety of the campaign. Those little elements were a massive part of relaxing us.”

Getting to that point, Hooper felt it was fate, “I guess I thought, this is how it’s meant to be. There was no other side we wanted to face in that final other than the All Blacks. We’d drawn the Bledisloe 1-1 and you only want to win the World Cup by beating the best and with Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Ma’a Nonu they were certainly in that category.”

You think you’re going to get more opportunities at World Cup finals and then before you know it, it’s your only opportunity to lift the Webb Ellis Cup. I have no regrets though because it was a fabulous experience.

Hooper says the build-up to the World Cup final flew by in a blur, before the whistle is going and you’re in the zone. “The build-up comes and goes so quickly. It was a hugely physical encounter, as you’d expect. After a slow start, we fought our way back into it.”

With Nehe Milner-Skudder scoring early on, and Ma’a Nonu scoring a brace, which included a memorable 40m jinking run through heavy traffic. After a Ben Smith yellow card, the Wallabies, through David Pocock and Kuridrani tries, reduced the deficit to four points after 69 minutes, before Carter stepped back in the pocket and swung his left boot, leaving Hooper crestfallen. “We had our hearts broken by that DC drop goal. Then Beauden Barrett showed his pace to outrun our tiring defence and they put the game to bed.”

At 34-17 down, they needed a miracle to win. It didn’t come.

Looking back 11 years, Hooper says the precociousness of youth insulates you from disappointment. “You think you’re going to get more opportunities at World Cup finals and then before you know it, it’s your only opportunity to lift the Webb Ellis Cup. I have no regrets though because it was a fabulous experience. We had a great team. We were hungry, we were willing to sacrifice all we had to for a shot at lifting that trophy.”

After six weeks, and months, if not years of preparation, their dream was over. “There’s not a thing I’d change about that experience. I know how I got into the team, through hard work and some real desire. What does amaze me now, walking the dog is what I put my body through. There was an almost reckless abandon for what was required to get to that level.”

So, was it worth it? “Yes, of course. Nowadays you’re in the commentary box and you watch the teams coming out, the anthems playing out and the whistle goes and it take you back, but then they start belting each other and you think, ‘oh yeah, I’m good,’ he smiles.

Looking ahead, with pre-sale tickets already on sale, in 20 months sides will start arriving in Australia for the first World Cup in 24 years in the country. Hooper is confident Australian fans will rise to the challenge. “The Wallaby fans will be out in droves but what I’m excited about is the other casual sports fans who don’t understand just yet how great rugby union is. NRL and AFL get a lot of exposure here, but what they don’t the global reach and pull of a genuine world event.

Hooper says it’s the camaraderie and rich culture in the sport which sets it apart. “We saw that in a big way with the Lions fans coming here last year. It dominated the news agenda, especially after that Second Test. Now with more games, it will drive the conversation in the country for two months, especially if the Wallabies do well. The whole rugby world will be coming down here for a carnival. I don’t want to think about it too much because it gets me too excited.”

However, not so much that he fancies pulling on those boots again. Some things are best left to the kids…