Tom Hooper, the robust Wallabies forward, recently opened up about the unexpected benefits of his injury timeout during the Nations Championship. Hooper, who moved from the Brumbies to the Exeter Chiefs, faced a rigorous schedule that was briefly interrupted by a shoulder injury sustained in July against Ireland. This pause, however, turned out to be serendipitous, giving him the much-needed rest before a packed schedule towards the end of 2026.
“It was a hairline fracture in my scapula that I picked up in the Ireland game,” Hooper shared, explaining the nature of his injury. “It felt nasty at the time, but it just needed some time to settle down before going into the weights programme. I was flogged like a dead horse, did plenty of fitness, but feeling really good and ready to go!”
“It was definitely a blessing in disguise,”
Hooper's involvement in a staggering 23 matches during his inaugural season with Exeter included 22 starts and rarely saw him playing less than 60 minutes. This heavy workload underscored his lament at missing the succeeding Tests against France, Italy, and Japan.
“When you see the boys digging in, you just want to be out there; but you've got to listen to your body. That’s what we learn as athletes: you’ve got to listen to your body when it’s trying to tell you something, and for me it was trying to tell me that I needed to get everything right and ready to go for a big backend of the year,” he added.
The Wallabies are now gearing up for a challenging lineup that includes a two-Test tour of Argentina followed by confrontations with the Springboks and the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup. The squad will end the year facing England, Scotland, and Wales in the November leg of the Nations Championship.
New Wallabies coach Les Kiss is keen on tapping into the diverse experiences brought by players like Hooper. “I’ll tap into some of his experiences,” Kiss remarked, noting the potential benefits this could bring to the team.
Hooper’s shift to the Exeter Chiefs marked a significant adaptation to a different style of rugby, which he believes has honed his skills. “It’s a different brand of rugby that they play over there,” Hooper reflected. “And anytime you can expose yourself to a new stimulus, you’re going to improve. That’s what I’ve done over the past 12 months over there. It’s been good playing against Argentinians, South Africans, English, Welsh; you name it, we play all of them over there. It’s been a really good experience playing against a whole different range of athletes and a different brand of rugby.”
The lessons Hooper and his teammates gain from such international exposures are crucial as they prepare to take on some of the toughest teams in world rugby. With the forthcoming series of tests, the Wallabies are not just looking to compete, but also to capture some formative experiences that could define their performances in the seasons to come.
