Harri’s happy to learn at the feet of master Ben
Being coached by one of the world’s best is a bonus for any aspiring player and budding tighthead Harri O’Connor is certainly making the most of an opportunity to learn his trade under the tutelage of double World Cupwinning New Zealand prop, Ben Franks.
Promoted to Scarlets’ first-team training squad at the same time Franks was joining the coaching staff from Northampton this summer, O’Connor is soaking up knowledge as he builds towards a full debut on the way to achieving his dream of playing for Wales.
“I’m being coached by Richard Kelly and Ben Franks so I’m picking their brains, especially Ben as he’s been there and done it all as a prop,” O’Connor, 19, said.
“He’s so knowledgeable about both sides of the scrum and is a lovely bloke to go with it, so he’s a brilliant guy for the younger lads to deal with. There’s no better person to learn from so I’m just trying to make my mark in training and earn myself a chance.”
O’Connor’s arrival at the Scarlets came via a roundabout route courtesy of his father, Dai, who served with the First Welsh Dragoon Guards in the north of England, Germany and Saudi Arabia before the family settled in Dorchester and young
Harri started sport.
Born in Northallerton, he explained: “We moved around a lot when I was very young and after we came to Dorchester when I was four or five, I mainly played football. It wasn’t until I was about 12 that my dad encouraged me to take up rugby. I started playing for Dorchester and we had quite a good team at my age group, so I progressed pretty quickly.
“I was a winger at first, but I soon became a prop and after getting into the Dorset & Wiltshire squad, I got picked up by Bath at around 15. I’m Welsh qualified, though, and but for the fact my dad was in the army I’d have been born there. My whole family is Welsh and I wanted to play for Wales, so luckily I managed to get on the Welsh Exiles programme.
“From there I earned a scholarship to Llandovery College and my mum and dad were willing to let me go off on my own, so things took off from there and I got on to the Cardiff Blues radar at first before what the Scarlets were offering me looked better.”
Renowned for his scrummaging, O’Connor was capped by Wales at U19s level last year and appeared in this year’s U20s Six Nations. He added: “The Six Nations was a hell of an experience for me. Unfortunately, I fall the wrong side of the cut-off point for another crack at the U20s Six Nations but my target is to get senior rugby for the Scarlets.
“I’ve got big competition from Samson Lee, Werner Kruger, Javan Sebastian and Alex Jeffries, but Alex is injured and if others get picked by Wales, I might get a shot.”