Rugby: Rare talent in great heart

Robert Fruean is being compared to All Black Isaia Toeava, despite having played only one 30-minute cameo for the Hurricanes. Photo / Getty Images

Meet the next Isaia Toeava.

His name is Robert Fruean. He is 20. His Super Rugby career consists of one 30-minute cameo off the bench for the Hurricanes. He has also played two games for Wellington, two years ago. And he is a Junior All Black, the bolter in the squad who begin their Pacific Nations Cup campaign against Samoa in Apia tonight.

While Fruean and his coaches are wary of comparison with Toeava, the parallels are simply too strong to ignore.

Both are of Samoan extraction, although Fruean was born in Wellington while Toeava emigrated as a child.

Both are big, strong and fast - although Fruean, at 1.90m and 104kg, is 9cm taller and 12kg heavier.

Both can play any position in the backline from second five-eighths out, and have even dabbled at first five-eighths.

Both had glittering junior careers, and were marked for stardom at an early age.

Toeava was the star turn at the 2005 Under-19 world championships. Fruean followed in his footsteps two years later, turning enough heads to be named world Under-19 player of the year.

And, finally, both were selected, almost out of nowhere, for higher honours.

Those who have watched Toeava struggle with the pressure and expectation since he was picked for the All Blacks' 2005 northern tour as a 19-year-old with just eight games of NPC rugby under his belt will hope the comparisons end there.

In a way, they do. Neither Fruean nor Toeava had been particularly tested by rugby when they received their call-ups. But Fruean has certainly been tested by life.

When he followed up his Under-19 exploits with five tries on his Wellington debut in a pre-season match, there was little hint that Fruean's world was about to unravel.

But what started as joint soreness was eventually diagnosed as rheumatic fever. A team doctor sent him for tests on his heart. The news was not good, a leaky valve causing a potentially fatal murmur. The valve needed to be replaced, meaning open heart surgery. There was no guarantee he'd survive.

Fruean though, didn't need a guarantee. He knew he'd live, knew he'd play rugby again.

"No, never, never, never," he says when asked if he thought he might die. "I was too young for that. I've got to make another generation of my own."

The last quip is typical. He is quick to laugh. There is no sign of the awkwardness that characterised the painfully shy Toeava's entrance into the spotlight.

A former head boy of Porirua College, Fruean appears a much more rounded character.

He views his health problems, for instance, almost as a positive. They taught him to keep things in perspective, to stay grounded.

"Bad things happen to good people, that's just the way life is. You've just got to take it on the chin," he says. "It helped me get my feet back on the ground, make sure I was taking it step by step. Things happen for a reason.

"At first it was [scary], but it got to the point where I just wanted to get in, get out and get back on to the field again.

"Other than that I just stayed strong with my family and kept my faith in the Lord. I knew he was going to carry me through."

His faith wasn't misplaced. He has a pigskin valve that will need to be replaced in about 10 years, but other than that he is fine.

"I just feel normal. I've been feeling normal since the end of the operation. I'm just waiting for some game time now.

"After a major operation like that you are still on shaky ground a little bit. I just want to gain that confidence back, get back on to the field and play some good footie."

Not picked for today's match, he will have to wait at least another week for the chance to test himself. But he is far from the only person curious about how he will go.

Juniors co-coaches Ian Foster and Colin Cooper played no part in the team's selection.

Fruean's inclusion in what is effectively a shadow All Blacks side was entirely at the direction of Graham Henry and his All Blacks panel.

His lack of game time means he is very much an unknown quantity, even to Cooper, his coach at the Hurricanes.

"He is a bright, big, strong, fast athlete," Cooper said.

"He has been earmarked as a potential All Black and what he has done to get through his illness is fantastic really. We didn't know whether he was ever going to play again."

Not quite a Special Project - the unwanted moniker that has hung like an albatross around Toeava's neck - Fruean is certainly a special case.

An additional spot in the Hurricanes' wider training group was created for him when he received medical clearance to resume training earlier this year, while his elevation to the Juniors speaks for itself.

But, with Toeava practically a case study in how not to manage a precocious talent, Henry and co at least seem to be adopting a more measured approach with the country's latest phenom.

Cooper agrees that Fruean will need to be nurtured carefully.

"Definitely. And he is in good environments to get managed, both here and at the Hurricanes. The All Blacks are looking at the future and I guess if you spoke to Ted [Graham Henry] he'd be saying the same thing - he is the future."

Cooper is also wary of the comparisons with Toeava, a player who finally seems to be getting the most out of his rare talent.

"It's too early. I don't know Robert as well and I haven't seen him play. I mean, he's had [two] games of NPC. I had Isaia at the Hurricanes for a full season and he was outstanding.

"You can see them at training but it is not until they are on the stage that you find out how good someone is.

"Robbie has still got to go through all of that."

He might be back on the fast track, but it certainly doesn't seem likely Fruean will go off the rails. And he intends to make the most of his opportunity.

"You've got to breathe it all in and exhale slowly."

ROBERT FRUEAN

Born: July 17, 1988, Wellington.
Age: 20.
Height: 190cm.
Weight: 104kg.
Position: Midfield/wing.
Super 14 caps: 1.
Debut: v Blues 2009.
NPC caps: 2.
Debut: v Tasman 2007.
Honours: 2007 U19 world player of the year, Junior All Blacks 2009.

JUNIOR ALL BLACKS

* v Samoa, Apia, tonight 5.30.
* v Fiji, Lautoka, Thursday, 3.10pm.
* v Japan, Lautoka, Tuesday, June 23, 3.10pm.
* v Tonga, Suva, Thursday, July 2, 3.10pm.