Gold hunt begins for Fairbrother
June 16 2009
Incoming prop Tim Fairbrother has laid out his route to a Wallaby jersey that will start with earning respect at Western Force in the coming season.
The New Zealand-born front-rower, who has signed for the Perth outfit from the Hurricanes on a two-year contract, played for his native country at U19 and U21 level.
However, the 27-year-old then struggled to bypass the power of those in front of him and recently opted to head for Australia in order to impress Robbie Deans and subsequently make the step up to the gold jersey.
"Yeah it [the Wallabies] is part of the plan but at the moment it's far from my line of thought," Fairbrother said, speaking to AAP.
"I just want to come over and play as good as I can, and if that [a call-up] happens it happens.
"It would be a good thing if it happened.
"But I want to play well for the Force and earn my respect around here before I start throwing that around."
Western Force's busy recruitment policy during the off-season has also seen them land another prop in the shape of Matt Dunning, who along with Fairbrother, should improve their tight play and set-piece strength.
And with loosehead Pek Cowan set to make his Wallaby debut this Saturday against Italy, Fairbrother is adamant that competition for places can only be good for the Super 14 outfit.
"I think it's good, it creates a bit of competition between the three props we have here," he continued.
"That's healthy and in terms of Super 14 you can't get through with just two frontline props.
"I've played against him [Dunning] and he's quite good.
"Both of us are pretty experienced at this level and he's had Test match experience so it's a good thing for the club.
"Pek's playing well so it's only going to make us stronger."