Willis hooks into comeback

Tom Willis is approaching the provincial rugby championship with a markedly different mindset compared to 2005, when he was thinking global, not local.

After all, the former international hooker -- whose claim to fame was captaining the All Blacks in his debut against Ireland A five years ago -- will not be backpacking around Europe when Waikato start their Air New Zealand Cup campaign on Saturday night.

Willis, 27, was yesterday named as hooker in the team to play Southland, the trip to Invercargill representing his return to the national domestic scene for the first time since 2004.

He managed only one game that season -- against Canterbury in September -- when he made a premature return five months after prolapsed disc surgery.

Although the operation was a success, an undetected spinal infection was gnawing away at the bone. Further investigations finally revealed the new source of discomfort and it was back to the sidelines.

Told he would be confined to a minimalist role in the Waikato gymnasium for the foreseeable future, the relative inactivity was soon too much too bear.

"I found it particularly frustrating having to watch the boys train so hard and I was on fairly light, limited duties," Willis recalled.

"They were sweating it out and it was doing my head in. I didn't feel like I was getting any closer to playing."

Fortunately, the Waikato Rugby Union sympathised with his plight and allowed him time out to take stock in Europe.

While the Chiefs were building for last year's Super 12, Willis was spending three months in Europe.

Mindful his rehabilitation was still a work in progress, there was no dicey running with the bulls in Pamplona, because deep down he wanted to return to Mooloo territory.

"It (the trip) cleared my mind, to be honest.

"I wanted to keep playing but I knew my body needed time away to rest and repair."

He returned to New Zealand midway through last year's NPC and took only a passing interest in it as he plotted a return in the Super 14.

Willis, who played the last of his five tests against South Africa in 2002, ultimately shared the Chiefs' hooking duties with Bay of Plenty's Aleki Lutui.

It was not quite the comeback he envisaged so Willis has plenty of motivation to produce a strong campaign with Waikato.

"I just want to raise the bar from where I finished in Super 14," he said.

"It took me a while to get back into that level of rugby, now I want to go from game to game and string together some good personal performances."

Willis had a useful last pre-season outing against Bay of Plenty last Saturday when Waikato scored a comfortable 50-15 victory.

He admitted, however, that Invercargill's Rugby Park was not necessarily the most hospitable location to relaunch his provincial career, particularly after Southland pulled off a maximum-point 36-21 victory in Northland last weekend.

"We know how tough it's going to be going down there. They got off to a good start, confidence will be high."

- NZPA