Cannon thanks his lucky stars

Brendan Cannon is tucking into a plate of strawberries and icecream when the Herald calls.

The hooker reckons he has earned the treat after another intense day at Camp Wallaby in Coffs Harbour. He is certainly not hiding his gastronomic reward; sitting close by are the coaching and medical staff who oversee the team's work from dawn to dusk.

Cannon is content he has earned the recompense as B Day draws near, the Bledisloe Cup decider against the All Blacks at Eden Park tomorrow.

Every day is a great day for the 30-year-old Cannon. He is pleased just to be alive a decade on from a horrific car crash in Brisbane, happy he blew the whistle on a hungry Bok in Brisbane and feeling more secure with each outing as Wallaby hooker.

He is set for his fourth successive Tri-Nations test after being one of the more prominent forwards in the Wallaby pack. It is a pattern he wants to continue after years of being a reserve for the Reds, Waratahs or the Wallabies.

Cannon first made the Wallabies in 1996 but did not play a test until his debut five years later against the Lions. Until this season 10 of his 11 caps were as a replacement.

"It was a tough ride to get to this position but I am enjoying every minute of it," Cannon said.

"I am treating every game as if it could be my last, I just put everything into it because it is like living a dream."

The rescue crews who cut Cannon from his wrecked car 10 years ago share the same view.

"When they finally got me out after an hour and a half they thought that would be the last they would see of me," said Cannon.

Not only did he survive but he also made sure he returned to thank the rescue crews who saved his life.

"One fireman, who'd been in the job for 25 years, said I was only the second person who had come back to have a yarn and say thanks. I found that amazing because these guys do a terrific job."

On February 17, 1993, Cannon was driving back towards the Gabba near Brisbane when his small car was hit from behind and he was pushed into the path of a 10-tonne semi-trailer.

The right side of his body took most of the impact. His knee was pinned against his chest and later required a full reconstruction, his hip socket was fractured and he suffered multiple cuts and abrasions.

"It is all surreal now but I have a constant reminder of that time with the scar on my forehead," he said.

Cannon was back playing six months later and the following year made the Queensland squad.

Unable to gain a permanent spot he moved to the Waratahs in 1999.

He also finished an arts degree, is halfway through an MBA and works in the property industry in Sydney.

But this week has been spent in Coffs Harbour, where he answers to Russell Crowe as he bears a little likeness to the New Zealand-born actor, who lives in the area.

"It all started a few years ago when I had a crewcut and facial hair and looked a bit like him in Gladiator," Cannon said.

The resemblance has continued with Cannon's longer mane matching Crowe's current style. The hooker does not mind being ribbed about his appearance as long as he is as in the squad.

That, he felt, had happened because he had knuckled down to some of the hardest training in his career after missing the Wallabies trip to Argentina and Europe last season.

"I am feeling comfortable but never complacent," he said.

"I am going okay and that helps while I would say I am in the best condition of my career."

He showed some of that torso a fortnight ago in the aftermath of the "Battle with the Boks" at Brisbane.

Cannon revealed gouges round his eyes and a bite mark on his shoulder, injuries which resulted in a suspension for Springbok lock Bakkies Botha.

The hooker has no regrets about his comments or complaint to New Zealand referee Paddy O'Brien.

"I have been in plenty of tough matches but what happened there was outside the ethics of the game and needed to be brought to the attention of the appropriate people.

"I was so taken aback, I was in shock, I was stunned," he said.

"I don't want to be accused of dobbing people in. I am always up for a tough game but not one which breaks the unwritten laws of the sport."

Inside Track

Name: Brendan Cannon

Born: April 5, 1973.

Position: Hooker

Height: 1.88m

Weight: 108kg

Club: Sydney University

Super 12 teams: Reds (1996-98), Waratahs (1999-)

Super 12 debut: 1996 for Reds v Blues

Test debut: v Lions, 1991.

Tests: 17.

Test tries: 1