Hamstrung Horne's time to heal all wounds

Sydney Morning Herald

Wednesday October 7, 2009

Rupert Guinness

WARATAHS centre Rob Horne has already paid the price of being ��young and dumb�� and trying to return from injury too early.But he won't know whether he has learnt his lesson in time until he plays in the Wallabies' internal trial match at St Ignatius College, Riverview in Sydney tomorrow. The game, which will last about 90 minutes and be refereed by Stu Dickinson and Steve Walsh, will determine who from the 43-strong Wallabies train-on squad will make the 35-player touring party for their end of season tour.The Wallabies will play the All Blacks in Tokyo followed by Tests against England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales and midweek games against Gloucester and Cardiff. The squad to leave Australia on October 24 will be named on Friday morning.The internal trial could make or break the careers of a number of players. Horne, 20, and in a Wallabies squad for the first time, will be vying with likes of Ryan Cross, Nick Cummins and Kurtley Beale for a place on the plane. It's an opportunity that might have come earlier had he not been dogged by hamstring woes throughout the Super 14. Horne's desire to play for the Waratahs on their unbeaten South African tour in the last three rounds caused him to return to the paddock before the original injury had fully healed. The result was another frustrating spell on the sidelines.��Being young and dumb, I tried to push it in time to get ready, and that probably wasn't the right decision,�� Horne said yesterday.While he followed his rehabilitation from that setback to the letter, Horne again broke down while playing for Australia in the under-20s World Cup in June. As a result, he will play tomorrow with only two club games for his club, Southern Districts, under his belt. Not that the lack of game time has dented his self-belief. ��I was aware there was possibility to push for this spring tour. I wasn't going to go on holidays or anything,�� Horne said.To minimise the workload on his hamstrings, Horne didn't take part in yesterday's group session at Victoria Barracks. Instead, he underwent a conditioning workout with Stirling Mortlock, Nick Cummins, Phil Waugh, Rocky Elsom, James Horwill, Sekope Kepu, Peter Hynes and Benn Robinson �� some of whom will not take part in the trial.The rising tension in the squad was evident throughout training yesterday. Many players returned to their hotel with welts and bruises to their faces. To simulate the pre-match build up as much as possible, Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has divided the squad into the two opposing groups, giving them time to gel and work on tactics. And judging by the physicality of the opposed work when he pitted the two 17-man groups against each other yesterday �� especially in the scrum �� there should be no shortage of aggression.It won't all be about brawn, and Horne and the other newcomers have put themselves through a crash course on the Wallabies' playing manual. ��We were up [on Monday night] looking over the plays, trying to get up to date,�� he said, adding that even the rookies could not expect any favours from Deans when he culled the squad: ��That's our responsibility.��Horwill, who will not play because of a big toe injury, believes the new arrivals have added an edge to the squad. ��[Everyone] has been going out there having a crack. I am sure the rest [of the camp] will be the same,�� he said.WALLABIES CONTENDERSSquad 1Backs:James O'Connor, Digby Ioane, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Berrick Barnes, Matt Giteau, Richard Kingi, Will GeniaForwards: Stephen Hoiles, Richard Brown, David Pocock, Wycliff Palu, Mark Chisholm, Dave Dennis, Ben Alexander, Al Baxter, Stephen Moore, Pek CowanSquad 2Backs: Lachie Turner, Drew Mitchell, Ryan Cross, Kurtley Beale, Quade Cooper, Luke Burgess, Josh Valentine Forwards: Mitch Chapman, George Smith, Matt Hodgson, Ben McCalman, Dean Mumm, Nathan Sharpe, Salesi Ma'afu, Damien Fitzpatrick, Tatafu Polota-Nau, Matt DunningRehabilitation group*Stirling Mortlock, Nick Cummins, Peter Hynes, Rob Horne, Phil Waugh, Rocky Elsom, James Horwill, Sekope Kepu, Benn Robinson* Some of these players will play in tomorrow's match.

© 2009 Sydney Morning Herald

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