All roads lead to Manly Oval for globetrotting International James Hilterbrand
For a “fat, freckly ranger who grew up in Adelaide,” James Hilterbrand has done alright out of rugby.
The 29-year old has created a new a life for himself in Manly, played professionally in Australia and abroad and is on track to play for the USA at this year’s Rugby World Cup.
But according to the chatty hooker, none of those experiences would even come close to winning a Shute Shield premiership with his adopted but beloved Marlins.
“To see the community get to celebrate that, it’d be amazing,” Hilterbrand told Rugby News.
“It’s worth so much to so many people, not just the players. It means so much to the community, to the junior clubs, to our fans that religiously watch our games.
“Turtle (Damien Cummins) told me that when they won the comp (in 1997), the whole of Sydney Road was blocked, not because it was closed down officially but there were just so many people around that you physically couldn’t drive down it.”
Hilterbrand’s r