HALFPENNY RELISHING BLUES CHALLENGEIt has been a whirlwind eight months for Leigh Halfpenny, beyond the realms of the most of the farthest-fetched Hollywood plots. The fresh-faced three-quarters, who only turned 20 three days before Christmas, was plucked from the obscurity of the Cardiff Blues' academy before making his first XV debut in May and, seven games later, found himself thrust opposite Bryan Habana and his World Cup-winning South African team-mates at the Millennium Stadium.
“It was amazing, the stuff that dreams are made of,” says Halfpenny, who still lives with his parents in the small town of Gorseinon, six miles north of Swansea. “Last year, 2008, was unbelievable, a dream come true. I didn’t expect anything like that to happen. But now, having played against the Springboks and the All Blacks – the best in the world – and not embarrassed myself, it has given me the confidence to believe I can play against anyone.”
Halfpenny, whose amusing moniker is ‘Pence’, joined the Blues in the summer of 2007 after being released by his childhood club Ospreys. While the disappointment was a kick in the teeth, it made him all the more determined not to let another chance go begging.
“I wanted to prove the Ospreys wrong,” he says. “I wanted to show them what they were missing. My dream was to become a professional and, when the Ospreys let me go, it just felt like my whole world had crashed down. At that point I started looking beyond rugby with my studies – I finished my A-levels and considered going into dentistry or pharmacy.
“But then the Blues offered me a place in their academy I wanted to give it another go – I knew that I could always go back to my studies later. (Indeed Halfpenny added the biology A grade required to secure a place in medical school last term to his three other A’s achieved the previous year.) Looking back on it, it was definitely the right decision and I’m very pleased that I can look at the Ospreys and think: ‘You didn’t give me a chance’.”
Blues coach Dai Young handed Halfpenny the chance to shine in the final game of last season, a Magners League dead-rubber against Ulster. He caught the eye with his searing pace and also knocked over three conversations in the 26-17 win at Ravenhill.
But it was last summer, following a star turn for Wales Under-20 in their successful World Cup campaign on home soil, when things really began to click. In the inaugural competition Halfpenny’s team reached the semi-final before being defeated 31-6 by eventual champions New Zealand. But, more significantly, it was in that tournament that Halfpenny was played on the wing as opposed to fullback, where he had featured up until then in matches. It proved a masterstroke.
Back when he was in the Ospreys academy, the coaches had been impressed with Halfpenny’s speed and in training he would sometimes play on the wing, much to his annoyance. “I wasn’t that keen on it to begin with,” he smiles, “because at the time fullback was the only position I had played and that was where I had wanted to play for the rest of my career. But I appreciate now that they just wanted to make me a bit more of a rounded player.”
With All Black Ben Blair playing out of his skin at fullback for the Blues, it is just as well that Halfpenny is happy on the wing – though his long-term aim is to make the Wales No15 shirt, currently occupied by Ospreys’ Lee Byrne, his own. He continues: “I had been making a career for myself as fullback, but at international level I think wing would probably be better for me at the moment. I’d like to think I can make a few appearances in that No15 jersey for my country.”
After being promoted from the Blues’ academy in pre-season Young was forced to used Halfpenny at the start of the season due to injured personnel – and he has played so well that has been impossible to drop him. Wales coach Warren Gatland was so impressed by Halfpenny’s performances, in which he had been likened to his hero Shane Williams, he had no hesitation in calling him up to the national squad for the autumn internationals.
When his secretary fired Halfpenny a text informing him of his international call-up, the youngster was convinced it was a prank. “I just couldn’t believe it,” he grins. “I was reading it, thinking it was a wind-up by one of my mates!”
Four coach-loads of proud family and friends, including his paternal grandfather Malcolm – the former hooker who, ironically, taught his grandson how to kick on endless afternoons – tripped from Gorseinon to Cardiff to witness Halfpenny’s international bow, a 20-15 loss to South Africa in November. And the winger was welcomed in by his Welsh team-mates with open arms – after the game they greatly applauded the tipsy tyro’s rendition of Bruce Springsteen’s Walking in Memphis.
Next followed a 34-13 win over Canada – a game in which he truly announced his talent to the rugby world by scoring two tries. Whereas before he could walk down his local street and no-one would bat an eyelid, now, “I can’t even go over to Ireland and not be recognised!”
Not that celebrity status fazes Halfpenny, who firmly has his feet on the ground, and says: “It has been mad, and I enjoy it. But I want to be known for the things I do on the field. I’ll be working hard for the Blues, looking to cement my place, helping them in all competitions. And then, if I’m lucky enough, I’ll be selected for the Six Nations.”
The immediate focus is on Cardiff’s trip to Gloucester this weekend, knowing that a victory will seal their place in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals. “It’s going to be a massive challenge – they have a team packed with internationals,” Halfpenny adds. “Kingholm is never an easy place to get a result and their fans are going to have very high hopes of getting a win. We had to play at our best to get a result against them at home (37-24), so I hope we can do the same. It would be a great achievement for the Blues if we get through to the last eight of the Heineken Cup.”
Labels: Cardiff Blues, Leigh Halfpenny, Six Nations, Wales, Warren Gatland
