Rugby: Thrush hoping to leave on high

Coaches don't have a bad word to say about Jeremy Thrush.

The Hurricanes lock strikes you as the type of player that coaches love to work with - he's determined, eager to learn and is prepared to do more than what is required of him.

But what his coaches also give you is a frank assessment of the 30-year-old who will play his final game for this home franchise when the Hurricanes host the Highlanders in the Super Rugby final in Wellington on Saturday.

"Thrushy's the old campaigner. He's not the most talented individual in the world but there's nobody who works harder or commits themselves more than Thrushy does," Boyd said.

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen had a similar thought ahead of a test match in the capital last year.

"He's a bit of a Steady Eddie old Thrushy, isn't he?," Hansen said last September.

"And Steady Eddies either stay that way or they get comfortable in the environment they're in and actually become better players and I think that's what he's done.

"He's the complete team guy ... He's worked really, really hard on his game."

That hard work was rewarded in 2013 when Thrush finally made his All Blacks debut. The term finally is appropriate given many had waited for him to realise his potential.

He was named world under-19 player of the year in 2004 and a big future seemed to be at his feet.

He made his provincial debut for Wellington in 2006 and ascended to the Hurricanes in 2008 but didn't come on to the international radar until recently when he took his game to another level.

"I changed my mindset on the way I wanted to play the game and then I also changed my mindset on the way I was going to go about it during trainings and the way I play," he said.

"I focused on a few little things with scrummaging and stuff like that and I let things snowball from there, which was a good way to go, I think."

Thrush has collected 11 caps for the All Blacks and only played on a losing side once.
He doesn't get offended by hearing his coaches liken him to an honest toiler and he's the type of player that knows his own limits.

"It's not hard to realise that I'm not the most athletic or the fastest or the most skilful so you've got to find a way to make teams," he said.

"I know if I go out there and put my head down and work hard and the boys around me trust me then I'll hopefully get picked week in, week out."

He's been a staple of the Hurricanes forward pack for more than half a decade and made his 100th appearance for the side this year.

Thrush will join English club Gloucester after this year's World Cup. He will leave the Hurricanes in a good place and potentially as a Super Rugby champion.

"There's been a lot of hard work, a lot of frustration and disappointment to get to this stage," he said. "It's a great way to go, a great way to finish this season and I guess it's a little bit of a dream come true."