From party boy to All Black lock

James Broadhurst will make his All Blacks debut against South Africa this weekend. Photo / Getty

James Broadhurst wasn't exactly lost for words when he was told he would be making his All Blacks debut.

"I think a few swear words went through my head," he told Radio Sport. "But it was just an overwhelming sense of accomplishment after the hard work of the last six or seven years that it took me to get here."

It has certainly been a long road for Broadhurst, one that began with promise, was waylaid by a few too many late nights and will this weekend culminate with a test debut against the Springboks at Ellis Park.

To call the 27-year-old a late-bloomer wouldn't be entirely accurate - Broadhurst was a national representative at both under-19 and under-21 levels. But, with potential clearly present in his physical frame, he struggled to turn that potential into consistent performances.

And, in hindsight, Broadhurst can pinpoint the problem that was holding him back.

"If you look back three, four, five years, I was probably more worried about what happened after a game on Saturday night that what happened before it during the week," he said. "I've just matured and got a lot of those bad habits out of my system and just put my head down and worked hard."

Part of that hard work has been building a routine to follow during the week, one that would help him harness his ability to unleash every weekend on the field. The importance of such structure was unclear to Broadhurst during his early years but, after making his Super Rugby debut with the Hurricanes in 2010, some pointed advice from assistant coach Richard Watt steered him in the right direction.

"He said to me that he couldn't understand why I'd play the house down one week and play like crap the next," Broadhurst said. "We've just spoken about getting consistency - that's not just on a Saturday night or Friday night. It's Sunday to Sunday and what you do during the week."

The lock's newfound consistency was abundantly clear during something of a breakout campaign with Taranaki in last year's ITM Cup, a season the Broadhurst pinpoints as a turning point in his rugby career.

Able to carry over that form to the Super Rugby season, Broadhurst was a key member of a vastly improved pack that helped the Hurricanes to their second final, though he was never sure about his All Blacks prospects.

"It was just about self-belief in my own ability and trying to get that consistency," he said of his transformation. "To kick on from ITM Cup and play some decent footy through Super Rugby was pretty satisfying. You never actually know whether you're in the frame, because Steve doesn't give too much away, but I'm just happy as to be here."

That sentiment holds true even if Broadhurst could have hardly been handed a tougher test for his first run in black. Facing the Springboks at Ellis Park is about as unforgiving an arena as any rookie could encounter, but Broadhurst knows he need only look around him if the nerves begin to creep in.

"Shag talks about concentrating on your job, knowing your role and only having to nail that," he said. "But he also talks about that if you ever get a bit nervous, just look around the huddle and the group. I've got Brodie Retallick next to me - the world player of the year. Tony Woodcock has started 100 tests. Then Richie McCaw and Kieran Read.

"They're some pretty big legends of All Black rugby so I'm sure, if I'm ever in a dark place, they'll pick me up."