Even though Leigh Halfpenny knows the story ends with his right shoulder dislocated and dangling impotently as he is helped off the Twickenham pitch, he relives it with stubborn relish. In one frame Luther Burrell, England’s panzer of a centre, charges towards the try line; in the next Halfpenny – five inches shorter and four stone lighter – has scrambled to his left, dug in the shoulder hard and deep, and prevented a certain try.
In between those micro-moments – anticipation, reaction, outcome – what went through his mind? Nothing specific, he says. But there is an unspoken conversation every time he braces for a tackle. “I am not the biggest, so when you’ve got a 17-stone guy coming at you, ball in hand, you know they’re thinking: ‘I’m bigger than you, I’m going to run on top of you,’” he says. “But I’m going: ‘No you’re not, I’m stood here, I’m the last line of defence and you’re not going to get past.’
“Luther is a big guy. And it hurt. But the crucial thing was he didn’t score a try.”
Halfpenny rates it as the joint-best tackle he has made, along with acting as speed bump to prevent David Strettle going over in the dying embers of Wales’ Six Nations victory over England in 2012. But the cost was significant. It took months for his shoulder to heal after an operation, and a nagging groin injury further smothered his hopes of an early comeback.
Yet after being out since March, and thousands of hours lost to rehab – which included upping his three-rep max squat to 180kg, more than twice his body weight of 85kg – Halfpenny is confident that an encouraging debut for Toulon in defeat to Toulouse last weekend is a tasty harbinger of what is to come. And, crucially, two try-saving tackles on Yoann Huget show his shoulder is fully recovered from being popped and ripped and then rebuilt by the surgeon.
“My shoulder is good,” he confirms. “I’ve had plenty of time to recover and get my strength and range of movement back. I’m very pleased with how that is.”
Despite an unexpectedly bumpy week in September, when the Toulon president Mourad Boudjellal threatened to cancel his contract and suggested he had masked the severity of the injured groin when signing from Cardiff Blues, Halfpenny says he is loving the south of France.
“As soon as I arrived I felt the passion for rugby,” he says. “It’s like nothing I’ve seen before at club level. Almost every home game is like an international. The buzz around the city and the supporters is incredible, especially with their Pilou Pilou chant – I just can’t wait to experience it, to be honest.”
What was your first day like? “It was great. I was shown to my locker – I’ve got Chris Masoe to my right and James O’Connor to my left – and everyone made me feel at home. And they have this ritual: the first time you see someone in the morning – whether it’s a player or someone who sweeps up – you shake their hand. And that happens every day.”
Another huge plus is the weather. “It’s nice to open your curtains and see the sun shining,” he jokes. Even in mid-October, as the rain lashes down in Britain, the temperature in Toulon is in the mid-70s.
But Halfpenny is not in France for the suntan. Toulon expect to be the first team to win European club rugby’s premier trophy three times in succession and he wants to play a pivotal part – starting with Sunday’s opening match at home to the Scarlets. “As reigning champions we are the team everyone wants to beat,” he says. “But the club are always looking to create more, to achieve more. Everyone is hugely ambitious.”
If Halfpenny get the nod at full-back on Sunday he will also take over place-kicking duties from Jonny Wilkinson following the Englishman’s retirement. It was Wilkinson, a player Halfpenny idolised as a lad, who helped persuaded him to move to France.
“When I chatted to Jonny he had nothing but praise for the club,” he said. “He told me that just being around so many good players from different countries would improve my game.”
But when you suggest that as last year’s Six Nations man of the tournament – and the man of the series for the British & Irish Lions in Australia – there is not a great deal to work on, he shakes his head.
“There’s always room for improvement,” he says. “Every single day I am continually working on my skills. At the moment kicking with my left foot is something I want to improve. And then there’s game awareness, positioning, lines of running, working together as a back three – all of them are works in progress.”
As is learning the language. French, he concedes, is harder than expected. “I’m studying three hours a week and picking up words and phrases every day, but it’s tough,” he says. All the team meetings are in French, and while the non-French speakers do have translators they are expected to get up to speed as quickly as possible. It’s something that Halfpenny, 25, promises he will do – on and off the pitch.
“It’s a new start and I feel like I have to prove myself to earn the right to wear the Toulon jersey,” he says. “That’s a new motivation for me which I felt I needed. I am a homeboy so it’s a new challenge being away from home and learning a new language and culture, but I am maturing from this experience.”
But some things, he promises, won’t alter – especially that fearless attitude when faced with a 17- or 18-stone behemoth trying to bulldoze him away.
“I think it’s my role, my duty,” he says. “That’s what’s expected of me as a full-back. There are going to be times when you are the last line of defence and that’s something I enjoy. I promise you, injuries are not going to change my approach.”
Leigh Halfpenny was speaking on behalf of Lucozade Sport. To find out more and view exclusive content lucozadesport.com or follow @LucozadeSport
