Tigers cub Heyes hard at work to mimic Cole
UPWARDLY mobile Leicester prop Joe Heyes is ready to burst into the limelight and show why Dan Cole is not the only tighthead show in town.
Academy tyro Heyes, 19, has enjoyed a stellar year helping Loughborough survive their National One relegation battle before starring for England U20s in their march to the JWC final and making his Premiership debut.
After featuring in three league games and both Champions Cup matches against Ulster and Scarlets as Cole’s understudy, Heyes said: “I’ve achieved my pre-season goals in about a month-and-a-half !
“My goal at the start was to play a bit of Prem this year and I’ve been lucky with the selection situation so now I just want to keep on learning.
“It’s difficult as a young prop because you want to get the scrum sorted first because that’s what you’re picked on. Our scrum has been quite damaging in the Premiership and I’m now trying to work as hard on my game in open play.
“If you can combine the work-rate Dan Cole puts on the field with the scrummaging you’ll be on the right road. He had 182 involvements against Scarlets the other week, so work as hard as he does around the pitch and you’re pretty much there.”
Whilst Heyes is currently sampling the bright lights of Europe, just six months ago he was involved in the muck and bullets of a level three dogfight.
He explained: “Loughborough were in a relegation battle, ten points behind, so they brought in a few Tigers lads and it was a great little journey.
“I didn’t want to hang around at 18 or 19 waiting for an A-game game every two months, I wanted to be out playing in National One because it was the best way to learn. You’re exposing yourself to senior rugby, which is what you want at that age.
“We helped keep Loughborough up and there was a massive sense of achievement.”
Heyes, a goalie in Nottingham Forest’s academy until aged 14, describes what followed at the U20s World Cup as a “life-changing experience”
“You learn a lot, not just about rugby but dealing with other people,” Heyes said.
“You’re there for four weeks, living with other players, playing against Southern Hemisphere teams, which I’d never done before. When it comes to open play it’s very tempo-driven so you learn how to adapt and deal with those challenges.
“There were lots of ups and downs but being away in France for so long and getting to the final against the hosts was a life-changing experience.
“It was the biggest game I’ve played – 18,000 people, all screaming ‘Allez Les Bleus’ – and at such a young age, going out and seeing all the flags and being in that hostile environment, it just made me want to experience those things again.
“Hopefully, I can do it at a higher level for England one day.”