Heenan looking at new horizon

By Jim Tucker
May 01, 2007

FRUSTRATED former Australia player Daniel Heenan is set to quit his World Cup year dream and head to Japan to revive his stalled rugby career.

Worn down by injuries and constant periods of rehabilitation, back rower Heenan, 25, is on the verge of taking a break from Australian rugby.

He made such a success of his move from Queensland to the Brumbies last year that he won a start against England in Sydney in the first Test of 2006.

The shoulder injury he sustained in that match was more serious than first thought and a full reconstruction wiped out the rest of the year and the start of Super 14 this year.

A knee-ligament injury that grounded him in club rugby for GPS ruined any chance of him joining the Brumbies' rousing run at the semi-finals.

Heenan has long been one of Australian rugby's best prospects but his Wallabies career is a mere blink - two Tests and 62 minutes of playing time.

It's a measure of his talent that the Brumbies, Queensland Reds and Waratahs are still pursuing the off-contract Heenan for 2008.