Rugby: Afoa warms to hooker role

John Afoa has been told by Graham Henry that moving to hooker will improve his chances of playing for the All Blacks. Photo / Getty Images

John Afoa's initial reluctance has melted and he's warming to the idea of reinventing himself as a hooker.

He's not going to ditch his first portfolio as a prop who can cover both sides of the scrum; it's more a case of proving he can handle all three front-row berths.

The idea of converting to hooker was made to him last year by the All Black coaches, but Afoa wasn't overly keen.

He still wanted to try to make it as a tighthead.

When Graham Henry rang Afoa last week to tell him he wasn't in the 26-man squad, the All Black coach was a little firmer in his view the positional switch had to be made.

It was presented quite simply this time - if Afoa were to switch to hooker, he'd improve, considerably, his chance of becoming an All Black again.

"That was the feeling I got from talking to Ted [Henry]," says Afoa. "When I spoke to him, he told me he wanted me to play hooker. It is a big challenge but I said 'okay'.

"If I can do it then it will give me more variety to my game.

"If I can cover all three positions, then it is going to give me a lot of options."

His journey begins Saturday when he will play for the New Zealand Barbarians at hooker. He'll have Jamie Mackintosh on one side of him and Auckland team-mate Charlie Faumuina on the other - which will make one of the heaviest front rows ever assembled. There will be 380kg of human smashing into the first scrum.

Of the two set-piece skills Afoa will have to learn, scrummaging is the one that holds least trepidation. As a seasoned prop with 23 All Black caps, Afoa has a good feel for the craft.

"I have played a lot on both sides of the scrum," he says, "so that has given me a good understanding of what a hooker does and how the work of the two props affects that role."

It's the lineout where the greater doubt lies. As is evident, New Zealand is not awash with accurate throwers. It's a tricky skill, not one that can be learned quickly or one that can be learned effectively in training alone.

As All Black forwards coach Steve Hansen said a few weeks ago when talking about Afoa's potential conversion: "From what we have seen, John has natural throwing ability. But the only way you can see whether he can throw under pressure is to put him under pressure."

Playing for the Barbarians against the Maori will put plenty of pressure on Afoa. He's aware this is the part of his game that will come under most scrutiny.

His athleticism, mobility and skills with ball in hand are as good as any, if not better, then any other front-rower in the country. Handling the scrummaging should be straightforward, so it really boils down to his throwing.

"I have been practising so much, my fingers are bleeding," he says. "I'm probably about 70 per cent of the way there. I hit the target the majority of the time but not every time. But I know I have to do it in a game."

How much he can prove to the All Black coaches in one game is unknown, which is why Afoa has been talking to his Auckland coach Mark Anscombe about how much game time he can expect at hooker during the ITM Cup.

Nothing has been settled as Auckland already have Tom McCartney and would prefer to have Afoa at prop.

But Afoa says there should be opportunity for him to pick up some more game time and end the campaign recognised as a prop who can cover hooker.