EMAIL SIGN UP
Keep up to date on all the latest rugby news, events & competitions.
MAGAZINE
Locked and Loaded. Jason Eaton.

INSIDE NZRUGBY THIS MONTH

FEATURES:

>> 10 OF THE BEST CAPTAINS
>> JASON EATON HUNGRY FOR TEST CAPS.
>> MILS MULIAINA AND HIS NEW LOVE FOR POKER.


JASON EATON HUNGRY FOR TEST CAPS.

JASON EATON HUNGRY FOR TEST CAPS.Jason Eaton came from total obscurity to All Black fame in 2005 and looked a certainty to make the World Cup squad until he injured his knee in April. It kept him out of the game for nine months, time in which he says he came to realise he loves being a professional player and how lucky he is. With that attitude and locking stocks thin once again, New Zealanders are hoping the 25-year-old will fulfil his enormous potential.


Monday, 05 May 2008
JASON EATON didn’t watch. As the All Blacks crashed out of the Rugby World Cup in Cardiff, the Taranaki lock who should have been with them was fast asleep in an Auckland hotel room.
Who could blame him?
Six months earlier Eaton had been dreaming of wearing the black jersey in France, a player with 10 tests to his name since his debut against Ireland in 2005, and seemingly destined for great things at the 2007 World Cup.
Instead, the 25-year-old found himself hobbled, his left knee wrecked playing for the Hurricanes against the Highlanders on April 30 last year in a tackle that ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament and ended his World Cup before it began. It would keep him off the rugby field for the next nine months.
Eaton busied himself helping his Taranaki team in the Air New Zealand Cup, running water, mentoring young players and growing his hair and beard.
He was hiding his grief behind his growth, simmering at his loss, becoming a bitter recluse and watching his All Black team-mates in the World Cup quarter-final had simply been too painful, right?
It’s about there that Jason John Eaton scuttles my preconceived story about the heart-broken rugby player who had lived in purgatory for the past 10 months.


Subscribe Now
SEARCH
CURRENT ISSUE
Locked and Loaded. Jason Eaton.

COVER STORY:
JASON EATON HUNGRY FOR TEST CAPS.

SEE WHAT'S INSIDE

subscribe
Poll

Who do you think is going to win this weeks match at Eden Park?

Auckland Blues
50%
Wellington Hurricanes
50%
View More Polls >>