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Boy wonder becomes a fine leader of men
Steve Kilgallon, Toulouse | November 1, 2009
THIS is Benji Marshall's big OE. He's never been beyond New Zealand, Australia and Japan (for a touch world cup, not to be wooed by Japanese rugby), and he's loving it. He thinks he could live in London - he likes the anonymity, the size of the place, the culture, the weather.
Denied by injury in 2004, 2005 and 2007, the New Zealand captain has never been on a Kiwis tour before. ''When I set my goals back in 2004, I wanted to play over here and it's taken five years to get that chance, so it's been a long time coming,'' he says.
For some, the enjoyment of their first tour would be tempered by the weight of the captaincy, but Marshall is relaxed about the demands of leading a 24-man team through a four-week tour of England and France - even though his previous captaincy experience extended to just a single Test match.
While Marshall reminds himself, as we chat, that he's still only 24 years old, the word that he, his club coach Tim Sheens and his national coach Steve Kearney all use when they talk about him now is maturity.
''I'm starting to break out of the mould of being young,'' he says. ''I feel old, but I am not much older [than the new players] so I am going to have to mature around them, on and off the field.''
He then talks earnestly of making sure the team's Polynesian players aren't homesick, of how the younger players have asked him what it's like to be Benji Marshall, but then he admits: ''I am still learning [how to be a captain]. I wasn't sure how to take it at the start, but I feel I am maturing into the role. I do a lot of talking in the position I play anyway, so I knew that wouldn't change. It was more about leading by example.
''I talk to the boys if I think something isn't right. I pull them aside and talk to them about it, or if they deserve a rap, I pull them aside and do that.'' This is a somewhat new Marshall. More relaxed, he says, but also more serious, thoughtful and deliberate.
Kearney says: ''I reckon I've seen a change in him this year … I think it was the most consistent year that he's had in the NRL and I think it does equate to [maturity]. I certainly think he's maturing.''
And Sheens believes Marshall was ''trying a little too hard'' during the Anzac Test, but understands his role now and adds: ''He had a very good season. I think he's matured this year and I think he will mature as a captain as well.''
During preparations for May's Anzac Test - Marshall's captaincy debut - he was so blunt, funny and willing to poke fun at Sheens that the Kiwis withdrew him from media appearances midweek. He's more conservative now. ''Last time, I probably should've shut up and not said as much,'' he admits.
All that said, Marshall is actually trying to go back to a time when he was young, immature and brilliant: to 2005, when the Tigers were premiers and Marshall was the wunderkind.
He says that earlier in the year he became too serious about football, became far too interested in what other teams and players did and couldn't switch off. ''I used to joke around before a game,'' he adds. ''Then I went all serious. Then I went back to being myself and joking around, and the old me came back.''
It helped, he says, that the headlines about his serial injuries finally receded and, unhindered, he put together a run of games (he played 25 of the Tigers' 26 matches this year). ''I started feeling confident tackling … people stopped writing about the injuries … life starts getting better and I started getting more confident and feeling good,'' he says. ''I found some form again, which was a long time coming. Getting games in a row let me get that confidence back and I am really feeling good about myself.
''It took a long time to get used to [the comments] and to believe in myself. All the injuries and the hard work I had to go through to get back to where I am, it was pretty hard and if it had happened again it would've been devastating. It was hard to get over and hard to listen to comment about, but at the end of the day, it made me stronger and helped me mature.''
That word again. But there is, before he goes, one gentle dig at his mentor, Sheens, just to show that the kid from Whakatane with the outrageous sidestep hasn't entirely grown up. I ask if he could ever be a coach. ''I think I could be,'' he says. ''It's pretty stressful, though - I've seen Sheensy's hair and I don't want to get hair like that.''
Steve Kilgallon, Toulouse | November 1, 2009
THIS is Benji Marshall's big OE. He's never been beyond New Zealand, Australia and Japan (for a touch world cup, not to be wooed by Japanese rugby), and he's loving it. He thinks he could live in London - he likes the anonymity, the size of the place, the culture, the weather.
Denied by injury in 2004, 2005 and 2007, the New Zealand captain has never been on a Kiwis tour before. ''When I set my goals back in 2004, I wanted to play over here and it's taken five years to get that chance, so it's been a long time coming,'' he says.
For some, the enjoyment of their first tour would be tempered by the weight of the captaincy, but Marshall is relaxed about the demands of leading a 24-man team through a four-week tour of England and France - even though his previous captaincy experience extended to just a single Test match.
While Marshall reminds himself, as we chat, that he's still only 24 years old, the word that he, his club coach Tim Sheens and his national coach Steve Kearney all use when they talk about him now is maturity.
''I'm starting to break out of the mould of being young,'' he says. ''I feel old, but I am not much older [than the new players] so I am going to have to mature around them, on and off the field.''
He then talks earnestly of making sure the team's Polynesian players aren't homesick, of how the younger players have asked him what it's like to be Benji Marshall, but then he admits: ''I am still learning [how to be a captain]. I wasn't sure how to take it at the start, but I feel I am maturing into the role. I do a lot of talking in the position I play anyway, so I knew that wouldn't change. It was more about leading by example.
''I talk to the boys if I think something isn't right. I pull them aside and talk to them about it, or if they deserve a rap, I pull them aside and do that.'' This is a somewhat new Marshall. More relaxed, he says, but also more serious, thoughtful and deliberate.
Kearney says: ''I reckon I've seen a change in him this year … I think it was the most consistent year that he's had in the NRL and I think it does equate to [maturity]. I certainly think he's maturing.''
And Sheens believes Marshall was ''trying a little too hard'' during the Anzac Test, but understands his role now and adds: ''He had a very good season. I think he's matured this year and I think he will mature as a captain as well.''
During preparations for May's Anzac Test - Marshall's captaincy debut - he was so blunt, funny and willing to poke fun at Sheens that the Kiwis withdrew him from media appearances midweek. He's more conservative now. ''Last time, I probably should've shut up and not said as much,'' he admits.
All that said, Marshall is actually trying to go back to a time when he was young, immature and brilliant: to 2005, when the Tigers were premiers and Marshall was the wunderkind.
He says that earlier in the year he became too serious about football, became far too interested in what other teams and players did and couldn't switch off. ''I used to joke around before a game,'' he adds. ''Then I went all serious. Then I went back to being myself and joking around, and the old me came back.''
It helped, he says, that the headlines about his serial injuries finally receded and, unhindered, he put together a run of games (he played 25 of the Tigers' 26 matches this year). ''I started feeling confident tackling … people stopped writing about the injuries … life starts getting better and I started getting more confident and feeling good,'' he says. ''I found some form again, which was a long time coming. Getting games in a row let me get that confidence back and I am really feeling good about myself.
''It took a long time to get used to [the comments] and to believe in myself. All the injuries and the hard work I had to go through to get back to where I am, it was pretty hard and if it had happened again it would've been devastating. It was hard to get over and hard to listen to comment about, but at the end of the day, it made me stronger and helped me mature.''
That word again. But there is, before he goes, one gentle dig at his mentor, Sheens, just to show that the kid from Whakatane with the outrageous sidestep hasn't entirely grown up. I ask if he could ever be a coach. ''I think I could be,'' he says. ''It's pretty stressful, though - I've seen Sheensy's hair and I don't want to get hair like that.''
