By MARK CASHMAN

Nine tries in four games and hooker, now there’s a collection of words that just don’t sit right in the world of rugby.

After all most people who inhabited the darker parts of the scrum would be happy with nine tries over an entire career, and in the case of this correspondent his meagre tally was made up of three, four and even a five pointer at the back end.

But Sydney Uni’s Declan Moore told Rugby News as he prepared for Saturday’s Shute Shield showdown with the Manly Marlins at Sydney Uni Football Ground he just “got lucky”.

“Yeah there’s been nothing flashy in amongst that lot – a few rolling mauls and a few from picks and gos,” Moore said.

“To be honest I’ve just been in the right place at the right time (in the first few weeks of the competition) and there’s plenty of good cattle around me.”

Uni have started the year in good form – four from four and top of the competition log – and to be honest have many worried with a number of the club’s Super Rugby stars likely to lob back at the back end of the season.

But it’s been success that has been learnt with rumours circulating the Shute Shield of the amount of work that Rob Taylor and his S&C staff were tipping into the senior squad.

Three and four nights a week and an eight hour shift most Saturday were the norm, but it has been that way at Uni with a number of decades – they work hard and they get lucky!

Moore takes up the story again.

“Our No.1 goal this year has always been to be in the picture come finals time,” he added.

“Not just in the Shute Shield but also right through the grades and the colts as well. The mentality is not to worry about finals at the moment but to just go from week to week (and build).

“Having RT (head coach Rob Taylor) has been good for everybody. He’s had a taste of the higher level in the UK (Leicester Tigers) and that experience has really helped him help us develop our game.

“He makes us sure that we are fully across all the detail that we need to know and the rapport across the club six there.

“You can’t buy that sort of (coaching) experience and he’s been great at identifying trends and making sure that wise are in the best possible shape come Saturday.”

Moore’s footy career has been somewhat stop start, marred by a couple of broken legs and a major operation on his thumb.

He attended St Andrew Cathedral School in the city and gravitated to Uni after doing much of his school sport on the Camperdown campus.

There was also selection in the Australian Under 20s squad but an ankle injury at the captain’s run before their game against New Zealand stopped that in its tracks.

Throw into that mix a stint with the Melbourne Rebels where he was the third in line hooker and it’s been a varied life.

“I’ve had a taste off professional rugby and would love to be back there at some stage,” Moore said.

“But first things first and I’ve just got to worry about what’s in front of me.”

It’s Ladies Day at Uni on Saturday and a little known fact is that the Marlins have spoilt one of these occasions already this season.

They came from behind to beat Eastern Suburbs at Woollahra in April and coach Matt McGoldrick would be chuffed if they were able to do it again.

McGoldrick has tweaked his playmakers swapping Harley Attwater and Ollie Horne.

The Marlins have had some success against the Students playing a field position game and having a crack at Uni up front and that may well be the game plan for the weekend.

They were within a try of the Students last time they played and this one is looming as that sort of encounter.

A big in the Uni though is the in form Tim Clements who sat out last weekend’s 50-0 win over Penrith.

That means that Henry Clunies-Ross moves to outside centre and partnering Eddie Poolman in the No.12 jersey.

The Uni back division are reasonably fresh and Clunies-Ross presence there has been vital in the early part of this season, particularly the last gasp win over Eastwood at Mudgee.

IMAGE: AJF PHOTOGRAPHY