It must leave a great feeling of achievement to be able to say that you not only have played over 100 Super Rugby games but to have played 100 games for the same team.
With the player transfer rate reasonably high these days, due to a number of factors, it’s fairly rare to see a player clock up 100 games in the same franchise. But that is exactly what Western Force captain Matt Hodgson achieved on the weekend, when the Force took on the Melbourne Rebels in Perth.
And what a brilliant game it was. Almost keeping the Rebels scoreless until the final seconds of the game, the Force walked away with a convincing 32-7 victory.
The Force looked sleek and like a whole new team. There was a spark there which fans haven’t seen very much of in team history. But it was certainly there. And Hodgson had a blinder of a game, scoring a try himself.
But where did it all start for the 32-year-old flanker? Well it all started in Sydney where Hodgson played in the back as a centre/first five eighth for the Avoca Sharks club team. Later moving to Manly RUFC and being recognised as the Player of the Year in 2002. From there, he was selected for the Waratahs in the same position but later switching to the forwards and developing as a Loose Forward.
By 2005, Hodgson had made a name for himself, securing a position in the Australian 7s team as captain. Also the Australia A team in the fifteen’s version of the game. It seemed the young Hodgson had a lot to look forward to in his playing career. This became evident as he made his Super Rugby debut for the newly founded Western Force in 2006 against the Brumbies.
That same season the Force Man of the Year award went to Hodgson. The award is handed to the player who best represents the Force in terms of showing the values of the team – both on and off the field. He has since been awarded the title another four times – 2007, 2009 and 2010 and most recently in 2013.
It would seem that Hodgson was certainly a force to be reckoned with, getting his first call up to the Wallabies in 2009. However an AC joint injury sidelined the future superstar for three months.
But was a little injury like that enough to stop Hodgson? It certainly wasn’t. He was back for the Wallabies Spring Tour, being awarded Man of the Match against the Cardiff Blues.
Now it would surely be enough for one player to be awarded Man of the Match for an international team like the Wallabies but not for Hodgson. He went on to win two more in 2011 and also Player of the Year for Super Rugby. However, in terms of his International career, that is pretty much where it ends. Unless you count being called into the 2011 Rugby World Cup team as injury cover.
From 2011 onwards, there hasn’t really much talk about Matt Hodgson. And I have to ask myself why? The man is clearly a gifted player of the game. Yet, he isn’t as well known as he should be. Taking an example of my friends in New Zealand. Most of them don’t have a clue who he is. Such a talented player should be recognised more, not just in his own country but overseas as well.
I guess it just goes to show, a lot of it maybe isn’t about the talent but which team you play for in Super Rugby. But that’s another subject that I will maybe get into later in the season.
For now, I will leave it in the words of Hodgson himself, “To play my 100th here at home and not only to get the win but I think the performance is definitely memorable.”
Speaking to the media post-match on Saturday, Hodgson also stated “I think it’s the best 30 mimutes we’ve played as a club in it’s entirety so to come out and play like that and show people what we’ve been working on and the style of play that we want to play is something I will never forget.”
So what is Hodgson, the rest of the team and fans hoping for this weekend as the Force head to Dunedin to take on the Highlanders? A similar performance to this weekend. I guess time will tell.
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