Jamie Pandaram | May 14, 2009


CRAIG GOWER'S transformation from league bad boy to Italian rugby saviour appears to have taken its most significant stride with news he has been selected to tour Australia and New Zealand next month.

Gower looks set to play for the Azzurri against the Wallabies in Canberra and Melbourne for the opening two Tests of the domestic season, which starts a week after the historic match against the Barbarians on June 6.

After being involved in a string of off-field controversies while playing in the NRL, the former Penrith captain joined French rugby club Bayonne in 2007 and has been in impressive form playing at inside-centre.

"It's very exciting. Obviously it was a goal [playing Test rugby] when I first came over here. It's justified our decision to come over here and do that," Gower told Channel Seven.

"It's definitely going to be a class above what I've been playing here so it will be interesting to see how it goes."

Italy's South African coach Nick Mallett flew to France two weeks ago to observe Gower in action in the Top 14 competition.

Gower joins a growing list of NRL stars who have become dual internationals, although he will be the first to play for a country other than Australia.

An Italian rugby spokesman would not confirm or deny Gower's selection but said a squad announcement was imminent when contacted late last night.

Mallet told the Herald last year he was wary of selecting Gower in the national team after reading about his controversial past on the Wikipedia website.

"I think what we would need to see from him was that he'd undergone a complete character change since then before we'd bring him into the Italian set-up," Mallett said at the time. "Here in Italy, we don't have the best players in the world, so the only way we can compete as a team is to have a tight unit."

However, Gower has so far maintained a clean record in France, and seems to be flourishing in rugby.

Former Italy player and Randwick coach Mark Giacheri said Gower's selection was "a long time coming".

"He has got all the skills and vision, one thing Italian rugby has lacked in depth is quality backs, particularly in the halves," Giacheri said, adding that Gower could play five-eighth for Italy.


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