Going for glory on a wing and a prayer

MANY Irish supporters weren’t convinced Andrew Trimble represented Ireland’s best option on the left wing.

That was certainly the case south of the border when the Ulster man first pulled on the green jersey against Australia this time last year. Even his two tries against Romania a week later didn’t change too many minds.

Denis Hickie’s supporters were especially vocal, with a number claiming his inclusion was a sop to Ulster because they had so few in the side. However, there has been a growing acceptance Eddie O’Sullivan may have been correct in trusting his instincts and giving Trimble the chance. He duly figured in four of the five Six Nations Championship matches and in June toured New Zealand and Australia and played in all three Tests.

He was also voted Ulster player of the year even though he had many rivals after the province’s victory in the Celtic League. If anything, Trimble took an even bigger step to confound the critics when he scored two cracking tries for Ulster in their smashing Heineken Cup victory over Toulouse at Ravenhill last month.

“I’ve had only a half dozen games so far so this year and I’ll not make too many assessments too soon”, says the levelheaded former Coleraine Institute student. “But, yeah, it’s been great so far from an Ulster perspective. We’ve been playing a lot of good rugby and that makes it a lot easier for the guys out wide. It creates a little more space so that we can express ourselves a bit more and it’s great being a part of that and we’re all benefiting from it.

“Psychologically, the two tries I scored against Toulouse were a big boost. You go out in the next few games feeling if you get a bit of space, you can show what you’re capable of. It’s great to go out against one of the best sides in Europe and essentially beat them in 40 minutes and score three tries and play better rugby at the same time.”

Trimble fully agrees the European Cup is a big step up from the Celtic League and is very close to the international game. Furthermore, he is a lot more comfortable on the wing than last year when he pined for his more customary position in the centre. He insists he has sorted things out. He feels his “game appreciation” has come a long way and he has learned a lot from the likes of Girvan Dempsey and Geordan Murphy.

Trimble’s devout Christianity is a major talking point, particularly as it’s not normally associated with a modern day professional rugby player.

“It was in secondary school that I really began to take my Christianity seriously”, he explains.

“I learnt how special it is and how amazing it is to have a relationship with God as my best friend. Every morning I sit down and read my bible and God teaches me something new. It’s so much more exciting than not having God in my life. There’s so much more purpose to what I do. It’s a free gift and God has offered it to everybody.”

“Obviously it’s hard to fulfil Christian ideals on a rugby pitch”, he concedes with a quiet smile. “There’s gamesmanship and at times you can lose your rag. You play as competitively as you can but it’s difficult. I’m human and I’m going to let God down occasionally but he’s just waiting there to say it’s alright and put his arm around me.”

His team-mates might not be as pious, but Trimble has a good relationship with them: “I feel like the guys I’m playing with are my friends now. I feel like I’m not playing with a bunch of strangers any more and that means a lot to me. It is different between playing for Ulster and Ireland. They are totally different systems and it’s a matter of adapting.”

Trimble didn’t have a problem with Ulster’s small representation for a number of years, pointing out that “we weren’t where we should have been. We are very ambitious in Ulster rugby and want to do as well as we can. When Mark McCall came in as coach, we took a while to settle in and then hit the ground running in the second year.

“With a bit of experience coming through and things clicking into gear, you start playing some good rugby and I think that’s reflected in the Irish team at the minute.”

Trimble uses examples like England centre Anthony Allen and Irish newcomer Luke Fitzgerald as people who have come on the international scene even quicker than himself. He admits, though, that it “was a shock to the system to find yourself surrounded all of a sudden by your childhood heroes. You’ve just got to fit in there. There’s no other option, you’ve just got to take it in your stride and make the most of it.”