Leader of the pack

Harinordoquy ready to rattle England

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Almost totally unknown outside southern France this time last year, Basque No 8 Imanol Harinordoquy has catapulted to fame as a key member of the France pack. And the hero of 2002 tells Rugby World magazine he is relishing the chance to rattle England's cage once again.

THE town of Pau, in the foothills of the Pyrenees in south-west France, is bathing in wintry sunshine. Imanol Harinordoquy is sitting outside one of his favourite watering holes, au Bureau, nursing a tiny cup of pungent black coffee.

Virtually unknown outside the Basque country this time last year, the athletic back-rower from the tiny mountain village of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port became an overnight sensation when he broke into the French team during the Six Nations Championship last February.

And if the reactions of passers-by are anything to go by, he has already carved himself a special niche in the hearts of les Palois. Every few minutes, as he sips his coffee, people come and shake his hand (men) or kiss him on both cheeks (women and men) and discuss the current fortunes of Harinordoquy and the local team.

"Fundamentally, I am still the same person, but a lot has changed in my life since a year or so ago," he says.

"The fact that many people now recognise me in the street, or come up to me and wish me well, has taken some getting used to. But it's not just because of me, or what I have achieved. I'm sure that it is above all because the French XV had a good season and that we left people with a favourable impression."

Part of the reason why the 22-year-old Harinordoquy has proven so popular here, though, is no doubt the fact that he elected to stay in Pau this season. La Section Paloise had a singularly disappointing season last year, narrowly escaping relegation to the Second Division, but somehow retaining their two current internationals, Harinordoquy and the France centre Damien Traille, who both resisted attractive offers from clubs such as Biarritz, Stade Toulousain or Stade Français.

"In many ways it was more difficult for me to stay than it would have been to go," says Harinordoquy. "But I decided to stay in Pau because there were a lot of changes, both in management and staff, in the off-season. I had the feeling we could really build something for the future and I wanted to be a part of that.

"This is a great rugby town and I didn't feel like going to live somewhere else. Not to mention the fact that by staying here at least I knew I would be getting regular games, whereas if I had gone to Toulouse or Paris, that might not have been the case. And in a World Cup year that can make a critical difference, because everyone is out to make a big impression on the selectors."

With nine caps now under his belt, failing injury Harinordoquy will be the automatic choice to start this season's Six Nations. But the competition will be fierce, with candidates like Patrick Tabacco and Rémi Martin from Stade Français, Thomas Lièvremont from Biarritz and possibly Thierry Labrousse from Agen.

"I had a fantastic introduction to international rugby last season and everything seemed to go right for me," Harinordoquy recalls.

Plucked out of nowhere after French captain Olivier Magne was suspended for foul play against Italy, he played his first match against Wales in Cardiff, wearing the unfamiliar No 7 jersey. And when the incumbent Tabacco suffered a thigh injury in a club game, Harinordoquy took over the duties at No 8, starting with a try-scoring blinder against England at the Stade de France.

"Of course I had dreamed of playing for France, but I didn't think I was ready for it," he says. "It was something that might have come along sometime in the future, so when Bernard Laporte called me into the side, I was literally thrown into the deep end."

Under Laporte's canny guidance, Harinordoquy's superb ball-skills, especially at lineout time, his tireless support play and his unfailing instinct for the game have continued to flourish.

But Harinordoquy, who is only in his third year of senior rugby, feels he is only just beginning.

"I know that my game has to evolve and that I have to improve myself in several areas. For the past two years I have worked very hard, but it just was a matter of learning as I went along. Nobody had ever shown me the ropes, and it was mostly trial and error."

This season, with new coaching staff at Pau and the assistance from Laporte and his adviser Jacques Brunel, Harinordoquy has taken his game to new heights, with more upper-body power -- and a few extra kilogrammes -- making him even more formidable in the close-quarter exchanges. One of his strengths has always been his ability to get across the gain-line, not by bulldozing power but by his athleticism, his ability to accelerate through tackles and to take the half-gap.

"But against the top level teams like England, Australia or New Zealand, that is not enough," he points out.

"In contact I felt I lacked a bit of power, so I have had to work on that." The proof of the pudding will undoubtedly be France's first game of the 2003 Six Nations, in the crunch match against England at Twickenham on 15 February.

"England will no doubt be our toughest opponent, and in a way it's a shame that we are coming up against them in the opening round," says Harinordoquy.

Although respecting the English, however, the blond Basque makes no attempt to hide his dislike for les rosbifs.

"When I first played against England last year, I came to the game with an intense personal motivation because, every time I had played against English teams in my youth, I found it extremely unpleasant. They are so chauvinistic and arrogant, they look down on everybody and, in one particular under-21s game I found the attitude of the players and spectators intolerable."

His stunning performance in last year's key victory [20-15] at Stade de France, including his first Test try in the 20th minute, has done nothing to lessen the resentment he feels.

"The only memories I have of England and the English are unpleasant ones. I respect their team, as they are currently one of the best in the world and as a sportsman it is a pleasure to play against them. But, as far as the English are concerned, I have decided to adopt the same attitude as them: I despise them as much as they despise everybody else! And as long as we beat England I wouldn't mind if we lost every other game in the Six Nations."

Harinordoquy is, however, quick to point out that despite the depth of feeling against France's traditional foe, he and his Tricolore team-mates will not be taking the other teams lightly.

"Everybody says that the Welsh are having great problems and that their rugby is going down the drain," he says. "But I clearly remember my first cap against the Welsh in Cardiff last year: they kept attacking until the very last second of play, and I am sure that if the video ref did not exist, we would not have won that game."

Indeed, although supporting the idea of a 'seeded' championship to avoid the top two teams playing each other in the opening round, Harinordoquy believes that the gap between the respective teams is gradually closing.

"Just look at Scotland's performance in beating South Africa, or Ireland beating Australia. Even Italy are capable of upsetting the big guns on a good day."

The difference, he believes, will be determined not so much by the balance of attack and defence, but by each team's ability to keep their errors to a minimum. And in the past 12 months France have become a team capable of eliminating mistakes and dictating play.

"The team that wins the 2003 Six Nations may or may not be the team that wins the England v France game at Twickenham. But it will above all be the team which is able to do the simple things well," he says, confident that les Bleus will be able to maintain their current standing as European champions.

"We basically have a very simple game plan and, over the past year, it has become more and more refined. There is a whole crop of new, young players knocking on the door of selection for France, and from here to the World Cup the competition for places is going to be fierce. But most of all, there is in this French team a real collective strength that will help get us through when the going gets tough. There is something in this team, a certain je ne sais quoi, which is partly a desire to go out on the pitch together and have fun. But most of all it is a desire to go out and win."

 

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