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Before Harry Wilson was promoted as future captain of the Wallabies, he dreamed of wearing a baggy green.
After watching his match-winning 35-ball century while playing for the Brisbane Gregory Terrace GPS School 1st XI in 2017, it’s no exaggeration to imagine the Wallabies rower as a brute with bat in hand.
If it weren’t for a surprise call to the Australian college team that traveled through Samoa and New Zealand a year before Wilson’s most memorable hit, that’s the path Gunnedah’s product would likely have opened.
That’s largely because even Wilson admits he’s a top-tier cricket tragic.
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“I was chosen in Queensland under-17 for cricket, that was my first state team. I was finally chosen on that and I was quite excited, but that year was also my best year in soccer, grade 11,” Wilson told Sydney tomorrow Herald.
“I was chosen from the Australian Barbarians for rugby so I was going to play both, but when there was an injury, I was chosen from the Australian Schoolboys. I had to choose one.
Anthony Au-Yeung / Getty Images
Wallabies No. 8 Harry Wilson pushes All Black Beauden Barrett at Eden Park on October 18.
“I probably always preferred cricket. I’m an absolute cricket fan. Still, today I know all the Sheffield Shield scores, I check the club’s cricket scores every weekend on the way to the games, I’m checking MyCricket.
“I thought one was Queensland, one Australia, and since I made that decision, I thought I should follow it. I couldn’t question myself.”
Had he opted to play for Queensland’s under-17s rather than tour Samoa and New Zealand, Wilson believes he could have made a fist in cricket mischief. Even if coaches often doubted his approach to go big or go home on the fold.
“I definitely think that if I had chosen cricket, I could have had a decent career,” Wilson said.
“I love cricket, but I was always a little different from most players. I guess because of my football experience.
Cameron Spencer / Getty Images
Harry Wilson came to the attention of Crusaders coach Scott Robertson earlier this year after the Reds pushed the Crusaders near Christchurch.
“He didn’t want to be out there all day blocking. He was a pretty offensive hitter.
“It was in stages. The coaches would always want me to tone it down and I’d always be in trouble if they caught me on the edge.
“By the time I got to year 12, I thought about that, I’m just going to do what I want.”
The part of Wilson that wondered what it would have been like if he had pursued a cricket career has been erased for a dizzying year with both the Reds and the Wallabies.
Bradley Kanaris / Getty Images
Wallabies No. 8 Harry Wilson on the charge against the All Blacks in Brisbane earlier this month.
Wilson’s powerful running game and deft unloading ability have seen him begin every trial of the Dave Rennie era, a feat he could never have imagined while sweating a preseason under the gaze of Brad Thorn last year.
“I felt that the more footy I played in Super, the more comfortable I felt with my teammates and this step with Test footy was much more physical, faster and didn’t have as much margin for error as you did in Super,” he said.
“Your game improves because you are surrounded by better players.
“This year has been incredible. I loved every moment and I am very happy to have a few more opportunities this year to finish it in the right way. Hopefully with a little silver.
“It has been a dizzying year, but I loved it and I would not change it for anything.”
