Wild keen to get back on field for HK
AFTER nine months away studying and playing rugby at Sydney University, Will Wild is back in town, raring to regain his back row place in the Hong Kong national squad.
Openside flanker Wild, who represented the territory at the past two Hong Kong Sevens and the 1994 Asian Rugby Football Tournament, returned on Monday night ready to pick up his life as one of the leading players in Hong Kong.
'I want to play for Hong Kong again. I have heard that there is a lot of international rugby coming up this year and I want to be around,' said Wild.
While away in Australia, Wild did not devote all his time to learning. He was a regular member of the Sydney University first team in the local grade competition and was a member of the University's recent tour of England, France and Spain.
'We played nine games on tour and finished unbeaten. I only managed to play three games on tour as I fell sick early on,' said Wild.
With the tour just over, Wild will not be hard-pressed to impress national coach George Simpkin on fitness grounds. And having added several kilograms, he is confident that he can win back his place in the back row.
'I weighed 100 kilos before I fell ill. At the moment I'm 96 kilos, and I feel it has added more power to my game. My mobility has not been affected and I think my extra weight helped my game hugely,' he said.
Wild's weight swayed between 85-93 kilograms when he played for Hong Kong.
'I needed to put on more weight playing rugby in Australia,' said Wild, who hopes to get back to a perfect 100 kilograms soon. 'I will have all the time to devote to training here.' He will become a full-time student in Hong Kong, studying for an external Masters degree in law.
'My foreseeable future lies in Hong Kong and I hope I can win back my place again in the national squad,' added Wild, who will turn out for Hong Kong Football Club in the Premiership.
Wild will face stiff competition from newcomers like Duane Davis and Mike Rarere.
'It is good to have him back as he was outstanding last year. But he will have to force his way back in as there is plenty of competition around now,' said Simpkin.