B.C. pair ready for Americans
Hotson, Hirayama relishing time with Team Canada
Canada knocked off the U.S. 27-9 last week in the opening leg of a two-game Rugby World Cup qualifying series. The second game goes this Saturday in Toronto at BMO Field (1 p.m., TSN2), with the leader on points from the series taking the Americas 1 spot in 2015.
We caught up with Vancouver’s Tyler Hotson and Richmond’s Nathan Hirayama.
Hotson, a graduate of St. George’s School and UBC, plies his trade as a second rower with professional outfit London Scottish in the second-tier English Championship.
A McRoberts Secondary product and fly-half, Hirayama is based in Victoria, playing with the Canadian team on the World Sevens Series while somehow finding time to finish off his degree in Physical Education at UVic.
PJ: Tyler, you’re getting the start this weekend as Squamish’s Jamie Cudmore drops from the lineup with a broken hand. Obviously you are different types of players. How will this change the team’s overall approach?
TH: Jamie has so much experience; he’s played in so many big games in his career. He adds to the grunt, it helps they’ve got some big boys, he’ll take a hit. My bread and butter is lineouts, so hopefully I’ll bring some stability there.
How does having tough internationals sync with your pre-season for London Scottish?
TH: You’ve always got rugby on your mind. I had some time off in June and July; it was a good break to have after Pacific Nations Cup. It hasn’t been tough, you put in a couple more fitness sessions but everyone’s in the same boat. It’s been good, training went really well in July, but it’s been an easy transition.
How about the attitudes? You guys always come across as very sociable but also professional.
TH: Kieran Crowley picks his squads based on character; we’ve got a good group of guys. We trust each other and we believe in each other.
You guys are playing some nicelooking rugby. From the outside, that trust looks to be in play.
NH: It’s just the systems that we’ve put in place; they have been somewhat coming to fruition. What our coaches are hoping for is consistency in our decisionmaking and effort. Consistency in selection helps a lot in terms of players, we’ve got a good core that comes and goes. Everyone knows our strengths and weaknesses.
Nathan, you’ve spent a lot of
time playing with Harry Jones in the past year or so, it must have been nice to see him succeed out there.
NH: It was nice to see. He took his opportunity; I thought he played well. And fair play to the entire team.
The style you guys are playing is drawing good responses, that must be pleasing.
NH: We talk a lot about playing positive rugby. It’s about changing the reputation Canadian rugby might have had over the last while.
As a fly-half, what’s different between preparing yourself in 7s
versus 15s?
NH: It’s a lot more structured in 15s. You have a lot of responsibility. It’s more like a chess game in 15s. You can be looser in 7s.
What about changes in skill set?
NH: We all work hard at all the skills. Generally from 15s to 7s, I find I have to communicate more, telling people what to do, being more of a general out there. In 7s you could be in a ruck, or winning a restart, it’s a bit of everything.
So 15s is about being disciplined in your role?
NH: It’s the nature of the game, exactly.
What’s next for you? You are nearly done at university.
NH: I’m not sure, my options are open. My main goal is the Olympics. Other than that it’s wide open.
I think any guy in the program — 15 or 7s — we’re all looking at that tournament. You might see some guys in the 15s program who haven’t been involved before, they might be putting their hands up for 7s.
What’s your routine like at the Rugby Canada setup in Victoria?
NH: I’ve never played pro but from what I’ve heard, some of the boys say that what we do is as hard if not harder. We meet for breakfast, then hit the gym and we do something like a speed session, then some conditioning, then we get on the field. Every day is different.
The team seems to have a real personality as a whole, just seeing how you guys are on Twitter, for instance. How would you describe it?
NH: It’s just really enjoyable. That goes for 7s and 15s. We just enjoy it, hanging out and we get along. We know off the field, we like to have our fun and a there’s lot of banter, but when it comes to training we take it very seriously.