Parkes thankful for Wales ‘family first’ ethos as pregnant wife stays at home
The centre can focus on beating France due to Gatland’s care, he tells Alex Bywater in Beppu
Hadleigh Parkes has spent the week recovering from a shoulder knock in a bid to be fit for a World Cup quarterfinal nearly 6,000 miles away from his pregnant wife, Suzy. The centre has started all of Wales’s games in Japan and has the bumps and bruises to prove it after breaking a small bone in his hand against Georgia. He then played the full match against Uruguay despite suffering a shoulder problem at the start of the second half. He is still set to take on France in the last eight on Sunday.
The 32-year-old’s dedication to the cause has been helped by the support network Wales have placed around their players’ wives and partners. Many of them have travelled to Japan but Suzy is too heavily pregnant to fly to the Far East.
“My wife and I are expecting our first child around the Nov 18-20 mark, so unfortunately, because of travel, she couldn’t come,” he said. “We’re spending a lot of time Facetiming.
“She’s doing really well and we’re fortunate with the support base we’ve got in Cardiff with a lot of good friends and a lot of people helping her out. They have been outstanding.
“This is the longest tour I have been on. It’s something Warren Gatland and his wife, Trudi, have been great with. Warren has always said it is family first. Trudi set up a Whatsapp group and all the parents and partners are on there, so they are organising lots of different things.
“That stuff goes a long way for family members who are a long way from home and it takes away a bit of worry for us. The Welsh camp has it very well organised.” Gatland has always ensured a tight-knit team environment and that extends off the field. It allows players to focus fully on their job, which they have done to date in topping Pool D with four straight wins. Next up is a winnable quarter-final with France. Parkes missed Wales’s afternoon team sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday to strengthen his shoulder, but was set to be named in Gatland’s team for France in the early hours of this morning. The New Zealand-born midfielder admits he is missing Suzy, but has been joined in Japan by parents Bill and Janet and his three brothers are imminent arrivals, too. It has given him extra determination to be available to face France.
“It will be the first time all four of us boys and Mum and Dad have been together for a while,” Parkes said. “It’s my parents’ wedding anniversary on the weekend of the semi-finals, so hopefully we go well against France and then we can celebrate in style in Tokyo. “My shoulder is swollen, but it’s manageable. I’m getting very well looked after by our medical team. I’m not doing too much contact at training, but it’s all right.”
Since qualifying for Wales through residency and marking his Test debut in December 2017 with two tries, Parkes has become an international regular. He has played in 22 of Wales’s past 26 games and will be a key figure against France as they look to maintain their recent stranglehold over Les Bleus. They have won seven of the last eight games between the sides.
“France are a team we know very well,” Parkes said. “Our past record with them has been pretty good, but it’s the knockout stages of a tournament so you have to put that to one side. It can come down to the bounce of a ball or a couple of decisions.”
Wales have been boosted by the availability of key backs Parkes, Dan Biggar, Jonathan Davies and George North after they all recovered from bumps and bruises. Gatland’s men are favourites to come out on top in what could be the New Zealander’s last game in charge if his side were to lose.
The 56-year-old will leave his role after the tournament in Japan whatever happens, but has designs on taking his team all the way to the final. If Wales and Parkes get that far then they will have made the whole country, and the watching Suzy on television in
Cardiff, proud.