BOND RECRUITS BIG IN REBUILD

EIGHT players turned up to Buck Heron’s first pre-season training. That was a sight he wished to forget.

Now, however, it symbolises to the Bond Pirates’ head of rugby how far the club have gone in a short space of time, as they seek to complete their transformation from cellar dwellers to Gold Coast rugby union title contenders.

For this season, 22 out-of-town players have been recruited to the Pirate ranks, taking their training number from eight to almost 60 with each session across their senior sides.

Ahead of their Saturday clash with Gold Coast Eagles, Heron looked back at the rapid rise of the red and blue outfit, as they sought to put in place a culture that not only attracted players but retained them.

“In 2021 we got up here in January and I went to Bond Pirates because they hadn’t won a game in say 14 months. They were known as the asswhipping boys of the competition,” Heron said.

“I got a couple of old boys back who were really influential, one was (captain) Brad Plant who was inspirational. I played five or six games at 55, which wasn’t on the agenda but my philosophy was if we’re going to die we’ll die together.

“It’s easy to demand stuff, but if you’re out there bleeding with them then we work together.”

Much of the rebuild of the club has been based on ensuring there is player depth tussling for positions, with several youngsters from the under-18s being given chances to shine in the first-grade competition.

With fewer international students moving to the Gold Coast since the pandemic, stripping the region of players from rugby union-dominant nations such as New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the competition has experienced a dearth of elite players and teams to compete have dropped from eight to five.

However, Bond have found a way to entice players to the region, and Heron said it was a focus on ensuring support was given to them off the field that prevailed. Last year’s star recruit, fly-half Lepau Feau who has now settled in the region, was a tribute to that mentality.

Feau nearly masterminded a rare win over the Knights, and his instinctive play will prove crucial against the Eagles with the Pirates fresh off a bye.

“I brought over Leps last year and his partner, I helped them get into accommodation so when they arrived they had somewhere to go into,” Heron said.

“The reason he came to us instead of going to the Shute Shield or going to Brisbane was I was the only club that asked about his partner and about bringing her across.

“That was the secret, I want to know about their family and wellbeing and getting them work before we talking about playing rugby.”