Even for someone of Sam Warburton’s stature there was no tip-off or discreet wink. That is not Warren Gatland’s way. Instead, like the rest of the Wales players, Warburton endured an anxious wait for a text message that arrived over Sunday lunch. “Congratulations,” it read. “You have been selected for the autumn internationals. Please confirm you have received this text. Email to follow.”
Seven months after dislocating his right shoulder in the Six Nations victory against Scotland, Warburton was back in the squad. During the summer, while he was running and rehabilitating like crazy and some were suggesting Alun Wyn Jones was a better leader, Warburton was asked by a random passer-by if he was the Wales captain. “Well, I was,” he said. “But I’m not sure now.”
Those doubts were eradicated when Warburton was reinstalled for Saturday’s game against Australia but such humility hints at why he remains so driven and successful. Even now – despite leading Wales to the World Cup semi-finals and a subsequent grand slam, and the Lions in Australia – he regards complacency as something to be attacked with the vigour of a loose ball at the breakdown.
“When I started playing for Wales, Warren Gatland gave me a good piece of advice: treat every international like it is your last,” he says. “That’s what I do. He can be quite ruthless with his selections. I’ve seen it happen to other guys. They come in, they take their spot for granted and maybe their behaviour in training isn’t quite right, and they are not in the squad again.”
Wales have lost their last nine against the Wallabies since beating them 21-18 in 2008, and their record against South Africa and New Zealand is even more sorrowful. With the World Cup less than a year away, Warburton admits his team need to make a statement after so many demoralising defeats.
“People often ask me about my worst experiences in rugby, and it’s not the sending off against France in the World Cup or necessarily the injuries, as they were out of my control,” he says. “It’s those narrow losses to the southern hemisphere sides. Every time it seems we have the gameplan, the belief, the attitude and the effort – only for a small mistake in the 79th minute to cost us.” Is that down to mental fragility? Warburton shakes his head.
“In every Wales changing room I’ve looked everyone in the eye and seen they believe they can do a job. Our players know how to see out games: they do it for their clubs all the time. But in the last five minutes of an international match you are absolutely spent. It’s our decision-making under extreme fatigue that has let us down.”
For the last fortnight Gatland has been pushing his squad to the brink with triple daily training sessions – something Warburton hopes will make the necessary slither of difference. “These teams keep on beating us, so obviously they are slightly better,” he says. “That’s the fact. And the players know that. So we definitely have still to find that other level. But we are striving for it.”
It was against Australia in the second Lions Test last year that Warburton played one of his finest games, dominating the breakdown before suffering a hamstring injury that ruled him out of the decider. Success in the messy, sometimes indecipherable, badlands between tackle and ruck, is – he explains – partly down to hours spent analysing video tape of his and his opponents’ performances but also about something more primitive: guts.
“I see guys who have the same attributes as myself – the same level of strength, fitness, flexibility – but a lot of it comes down to bravery,” he says. “It’s a pretty ugly place when you’ve got three 18-stoners flying in, trying to take your head off. You’ve got to be brave to get down there in those horrible positions and take a bit of a battering. Sometimes I’m struggling to shampoo my head the next day because my head is hurting so bad.”
At least Warburton’s shoulders, which have pained him since his late teens – he has had two operations as well as two instances of serious nerve damage – are better now. The dislocated shoulder was, he says, “a blessing” because it allowed surgeons to repair three separate problems.
Warburton’s body still bears the scars of battle. His hips need intensive physiotherapy and his knees also require 15 minutes on a bike every morning “to warm up”. While others are showering after training he goes through a separate stretching routine.
“I’m still struggling with my knees a bit,” he says. “It takes an extreme amount of physiotherapy and rehab to keep me fit. I don’t have the most durable body in the world – all the physios I have worked with will tell you that. I am probably durable enough to play football but not rugby.”
That said, Warburton points out his upper body is as strong as it has ever been and his performance levels have improved with every game in his comeback. “Statistics are like bikinis,” he says. “They look good but they don’t show everything. There are certain ones I look at, including tackle count, which shows your work-rate in defence, and ruck hits in attack but you have to look at the quality of those tackles and the quality of those ruck hits.”
Against Australia he will look to make three turnovers but, as he points out, that isn’t everything. “In a good game I might get in there 15 times to slow down the ball. And if you can win 20% of those and if the other 60-70% times you have at least slowed the ball down then you have done your job. A lot of back-rowers get disheartened if they don’t win a turnover but slowing down the ball is still a win because it gives your defence time to realign for the next phase.”
And is Warburton ready for the next phase of his career, starting with the autumn internationals and carrying over to next year’s World Cup? “Definitely,” he says. “Life is short and I’ve seen some players go through some bad injuries and experiences. That is why I’m going to enjoy every moment I have got. I still absolutely love it.”
Sam Warburton is an ambassador for Guinness. To view Guinness’ new Made of More campaign, celebrating the character and integrity of some of rugby’s greatest heroes, visit www.youtube.com/GuinnessEurope
