Horwill has huge shoes to fill

While I am a huge fan of McMeniman, I reckon Horwill is also destined to play a massive role in the future of Australian Rugby.
This may be just the trigger he needs to fire him into serious Wallaby contention:

James Horwill: http://www.redsrugby.com.au/reds/red.../section/40810

Horwill has huge shoes to fill

By Wayne Smith, c/o FoxSports
February 13, 2007

JAMES Horwill has deflected expectations he can fill the void created by the loss of Queensland Reds second-row partner Hugh McMeniman for virtually the remainder of the Super 14 campaign.

An MRI scan in Brisbane yesterday indicated McMeniman had sustained a high-ankle strain in the loss to the Crusaders in Christchurch on Saturday and is expected to be out for five to six weeks.

"Hopefully that's the worst-case scenario," said coach Eddie Jones, although he would only need to call Waratahs coach Ewen McKenzie to learn that a syndesmotic ankle strain can be one of the most vexing injuries a player can have.

Waratahs backs Mat Rogers and Sam Norton-Knight both had similar injuries and travelled a rocky road before being able to return to rugby.

Had Jones been asked to draw up a list of players he could least afford to lose, McMeniman surely would have been at the top. The 23-year-old Wallabies player had blitzed the first two rounds of Super 14, seemingly desperate to catch up on the rugby he missed after a shoulder reconstruction last year.

He was eight minutes into his comeback match against the Ospreys in Swansea during the Wallabies' European tour when he seriously injured his neck.

Against the Hurricanes and Crusaders he was the Reds' most effective ball-carrier, the linchpin of their lineout and consistently their hardest hitter in defence. All of which leaves a hole in the pack that Horwill, 21, knows is too big for him to fill on his own.

"It's a massive blow losing Hugh," said Horwill, who probably will be joined in the second row by English recruit Ed O'Donoghue. "I've got to step up. The whole pack has to step up."

If Horwill has played second fiddle to McMeniman this season it has been only marginally so. The aggressive, 200cm, 118kg giant has been a revelation, so much so that if Dan Vickerman's recovery from off-season surgery is delayed in any way, Horwill could find himself making his Test debut in June against Wales.

"He has done very well," Wallabies coach John Connolly said yesterday. "He's definitely a bright prospect."

Just how good Horwill is will become clearer to Connolly after he has watched the youngster in action against the Brumbies at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night in the first Australian derby of the season.

If Vickerman and Western Force captain Nathan Sharpe are in the front rank of Australian second-rowers, then Horwill's main rivals for a place right behind them are Brumbies Mark Chisholm and Al Campbell.

"I think local derbies are always important," Connolly said. "They're not the be-all and end-all for the selectors but there is no doubt performances in head-to-head contests between direct rivals tend to stick in your mind."

Chisholm came to earth against the Blues in Canberra after his soaring start to the season against the Chiefs, but Campbell, whose 79th-minute ruck indiscretion cost the Brumbies dearly last weekend, has not hit his straps.

"Al is not where he needs to be," Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher said. "I think he's struggling with an ankle injury and the power in his (lineout) jump is being affected."

Campbell will no longer be burdened by the captaincy following the return of Stirling Mortlock from concussion. But blindside flanker Julian Salvi almost certainly will miss the game after suffering a minor knee injury.

The 21-year-old ball-scavenger has justified pre-season predictions that he could be the back-row bolter in Australia's World Cup squad, but his likely withdrawal would allow Fisher to introduce a bit more height by recalling 200cm Adam Wallace-Harrison to counter Reds revelation Mitchell Chapman at blindside flanker.

Had Salvi played with George Smith, the Brumbies would have had two tearaways to field against Reds warrior David Croft. Fisher will still look to get around the Reds out wide but Wallace-Harrison allows him to counter the Reds' inevitable attempt to smash through close to the ruck.