Sarries snub set Piers on road to Auckland
GRAVESEND-born Super Rugby centre sensation Piers Francis has credited Championship outfit Doncaster for the part they played in reviving his rollercoaster career.
Francis, 26, has just completed a stellar campaign for the Auckland Blues – by far the best season for a determined Englishman who was rejected by Saracens as “too small” aged 17 but travelled to New Zealand in search of fame and fortune and finally made the grade.
Spells at Auckland and Waikato preceded a move to Edinburgh in 2012, but his Pro12 hopes were wrecked by injury before Doncaster boss Clive Griffiths rescued him at the end of 2014, providing a platform for Francis to restore his battered confidence.
Francis told The Rugby Paper: “That was a crucial spell for me at Doncaster. Post-Edinburgh, I had a very big injury and was searching for some decent game time.
“I’d come back to New Zealand and played some club footie, but then I managed to make a small deal with Donny at the end of 2014 and into 2015.
“It was a great club and Clive’s a great man. He’s his own man and has his own style, but I’ve got a lot of respect for him and it was good for my career.
“I’d never played in the Championship before so it was a good experience and it’s stood me in good stead. It certainly helped me to get where I am now.”
From playing in front of a thousand people at Castle Park, Francis now plies his trade on Auckland’s legendary Eden Park stage alongside All Blacks stars Jerome Kaino, George Moala and Charlie Faumuina, as well as up-and-coming flyhalf Ihaia West.
It is a far cry from his early days in Kent, where he played for Maidstone RFC while attending the Saracens academy a few evenings each week.
Francis recalls: “During my Saracens days I was still at school in Kent, so with them being based in Hertfordshire it was a bit of a trek.
“I went there for a couple of years but they released me. At the time they said I was too small as a 17-yearold, which was quite tough to take as I was still physically developing, but that only added fuel to my fire in terms of decisions I made.
“That’s been a bit of a driving force for me, particularly in coming to New Zealand straight from school and trying my luck here. People develop at different stages and I’m obviously a late developer, but it’s going well now.”
Francis now benefits from the tutelage of All Blacks midfield great Tana Umaga, who spotted his potential for ITM Cup side Counties Manukau before promoting him into the Super Rugby ranks at the much improved Blues.
Francis explained: “Tana’s been pretty instrumental. My dealings with him were firstly through Counties at provincial level and I really enjoyed his coaching style.
“He doesn’t need to say very much to command respect because everyone knows what he’s done, so it’s been brilliant that he’s given me the No.12 shirt this year.
“From being in the wider training squad to getting 11 Super Rugby starts back-toback has been great and it’s something I’ve been desperate to do. I’ve had my ups and downs, but I’m still very driven and have dreams and aspirations.”
One of those dreams is playing Test rugby – a return to England, perhaps?
Francis added: “From that point of view you’ve got to play in the Premiership. At the moment my future’s unresolved, so we’ll leave it at that!”