by Paul Cook –

Last August, the rugby world already appeared to be at young Hugh Roach’s feet. The then 21-year-old had just completed a significant double achievement, lifting the Shute Shield Premiership with his club side Eastwood, to back-up the Super Rugby winners medal he had earned only two weeks earlier for his role in the New South Wales Waratahs’ landmark title win.

Considering it was his first full season in the professional arena, it was some marker to lay down for the future, and while his impact on the Tahs’ success was largely limited to the training paddock, his debut off the bench against the Lions at Allianz Stadium, followed by another replacement stint in victory over the reigning champion Chiefs in Hamilton, were two nights he’ll certainly never forget.

But while he was ticking off some pretty serious boxes, the gun hooker would have been the first to admit he had a long, long way to go to cement himself as a regular fixture in the professional arena, sitting as he was as third in line to the no.2 jersey for his state behind Tatafu-Polota-Nau and Tolu Latu.

Fast forward eleven months and Roach has another season at Moore Park under his belt, which has meant another year of tutelage under Michael Cheika, another year under the mentoring eyes of 50-test Polota-Nau and another year of honing his existing skills, whilst trying to forge extra strings to his bow in a bid to hasten his ascent towards a starting spot.

He could have had no greater testing ground as a front-rower this year than South Africa, scene of his run-on debut in the Cambridge Blue for two successive matches against the Lions and Cheetahs back in May/June. Packing down against the behemoths of the high-veldt could make any young buck think twice about their career choice. But Roach, in as a starter as a result of injury to Polota-Nau and a suspension for Latu, didn’t take a backward step, performed the basics adeptly and showcased his fearlessness, rapier-like pace and ball carrying abilities, with several profitable charges getting his side across the highly sought-after gain line.

“I had a really good experience with the Tahs for a little stint this season and got a little bit more game knowledge and understanding of my role instead of trying to do everything myself,” a humble Roach told Rugby News this week. “It was a massive honour and a great experience from day dot to be there with the team again. It was physically demanding and the competition throughout the year was only a positive for the development of the young players in the squad.”

Roach celebrates Brendan McKibbin’s try against the Reds last month – Photo: Keith McInnes (kindly supplied by the Roach family)

Asked about his unscheduled leap into the fire in South Africa, the rambunctious rake reminds me that he has been in the program for a while and felt duly prepared for the step-up to the big time.

“It’s not like I was thrown into the deep end, I was training for a few years with the Tahs which warmed me up for it,” he points out. “I’d had a year of training under my belt and the guys were all really supportive and got me over the line. It’s about using your knowledge when you get there, remembering what you’ve trained for and putting it into practice. Making the transition from the U20’s to the Tahs was a tough one but we all learn from our mistakes and you have to keep moving forward.”

While he was relatively pleased with his efforts in both games, he came away with one over-riding mantra – master the basic requirements of his position first and then add the layers on top that give him a point of difference.

“I think around the field in both games on tour I was playing relatively well, but I definitely need to keep a mindset on set-piece. That has to be of the utmost importance and everything else can build off that,” he says.

“I think my awareness and knowledge of what my role in the team is has improved, but the set-piece has been a massive focus for me with the Tahs and I’m just looking forward to trying to bring back what I’ve learned to club footy with the Woods, keep learning and keep moving forward.”

Now back where his journey began in earnest, donning the white and blue jersey of Eastwood, Roach is keen to give back to the club that put him in the shop window. Helping them to another Shute Shield Premiership would be the perfect repayment for the time and passion invested in his raw talent a few years ago but despite their current position at the top of the ladder, the vibes coming out of the Woodies’ camp are erring firmly on the side of cautious optimism.

Roach’s combative, all-action approach was a feature of Eastwood’s win at Easts last weekend – Photo: Serge Gonzalez

A standout in last Saturday’s 46-15 win over Eastern Suburbs, Roach agreed that it was far from plain sailing against an inexperienced Beasties outfit.

“We got a bit of a spray after the game,” he admitted. “The score didn’t really reflect how we played or how hard some of the guys from Easts were hitting and how they dug in. We just got on top of them and the scoreboard got away a little bit but they worked hard out there.”

A healthy 32-5 half-time advantage didn’t lead to the second stanza blowout it appeared to forego, partly down to some dogged Easts spirit and partly to the Woodies’ loss of cohesion, execution and desire with the game already in the bag.

“We had a couple of bad turnovers and I think we lost focus a little bit, maybe we thought we were just going to come out and keep scoring,” says Roach. “The Easts’ boys took advantage of that and used their abilities out wide to pretty much stroll over a couple of times and that’s something we’ve got to look at going forward.”

Blessed with speed, agility and an eye for space, Roach’s skillset, particularly at this level, has the ability to break a game open. But as his head coach John Manenti constantly drills into him, it mustn’t come at the cost of his bread and butter requirements as a no.2.

“Johnny definitely wants that physicality first and to see us going up the middle before it goes wide,” he explains. “Sometimes, admittedly, I get a little bit loose when it comes to club rugby and running here, there and everywhere when I should be running up the guts or picking and driving a lot more. If I find myself out there with a bit of ball, I try and put a bit of pace on but as a hooker, the role is about going up and down the field, scrum and lineout.”

Eastwood coach John Manenti commands the respect of his side – Photo Paul Seiser/SPA Images

Those abilities however, do allow his coach to utilise them in other areas of the field if he sees fit, an option that saw Manenti switch Roach to openside flanker in the second half to accommodate fellow rake, Todd Pearce, against Easts. It is a role he has performed admirably in the past, indeed, his breakout year of 2013, when he lifted the Shute Shield Rookie of the Year Award, was spent for the most part on the side of the scrum.

“I was at flanker all the time in my first year of 1st Grade but I haven’t found myself there for a while,” he admits. “I was blowing a bit at the end there and I switched to 6 for a little bit to get a bit of a rest but they kept running that way!”

For a young player already trying to establish himself in one specialised position, it is a shift he may have cause to question if and when it arises. But the levels of respect from player towards coach ensures that it will never be an issue.

“It wasn’t discussed with Johnny beforehand but our relationship is a case of him saying ‘Jump’ and me saying ‘How high?’” smiles Roach. “I back him 100% wherever he puts me and just try to do my best for him and the team wherever I am on the field.

“I wouldn’t be at the Tahs if it wasn’t for Eastwood. I wasn’t anywhere on the radar of Super Rugby until I had a good year here and a few good games got me a trial and it’s been upwards ever since but I’ve still got a long way to go yet, even at club level.”

Having exorcised the demons of the 2013 loss at the hands of a rampant Sydney University with last year’s triumph over Southern Districts, Roach is keen for a repeat performance at Concord Oval come Saturday August 15th. But there’ll be no crowing from anyone at TG Millner til the job’s done. That’s just not the way they roll.

“We’re not looking at the Premiership or Grand Final, it’s just a week-by-week thing and every game is important,” says Roach. “We’ve got to tighten things up around the camp because in any competition, when it comes to the pointy end of the season, everything has to tighten up. Our training sessions have been a bit loose recently and Randwick’s the next game which will be tough, so we’ve got to improve.

“All I hope is to play the best I can to help the Woods execute their game plan every week and put the best performance we can put out there together.”