YOUNG GUNS
Even though he was released from Saracens’ academy aged 16, scrum-half Jonny Weimann’s resilience helped him achieve his dream and get to where he is today. Now 18, Weimann is in his first year of a professional contract at Northampton Saints and is enjoying learning off some of the best nines in the country including England‘s first choice scrum-half Alex Mitchell and U20s Junior World Cup winner Archie McParland.
Weimann told The Rugby Paper: “I’ll pick up certain skills and techniques by watching them and training with them every day, so it’s helpful having them to learn off. Northampton get you involved straight away in training with the first team which accelerates your development.”
Weimann earnt his first senior appearance for the Saints in a friendly 24-10 victory over Sale Sharks in March.
“I was in school and then my academy coach gave me a call during one of my lessons and said I was going to be in for training with the aim to play on the weekend,” said Weimann. “Of course I was buzzing. And then to get involved during the week with training and playing at the Gardens in front of a big crowd was pretty special, especially as I was still a schoolboy.”
Weimann’s rugby life began when his South African father took him to local club Royston. With split allegiances between his home nation England and his heritage in South Africa, Weimann found himself looking up to former England and Saracens captain Owen Farrell as well as scrappy Springbok scrum-half Faf de Klerk.
He added: “Farrell was a big role model of mine in terms of what he did for Sarries through his leadership. You can see how much he controls the game and leads the people around him. And I always loved Faf de Klerk’s tenacity. His size didn’t really bother him. He sort of just sticks himself into everything and isn’t fazed by it.”
Weimann flipped between half-back positions when at Bedford School and as a result provides strong defensive steel for a nine.
He said: “I think my selling point is my defence, because as a nine, it’s not a strong point of many scrum-halves, but I would say that’s my point of difference, along with all the other essential skills.
“I’m hoping to improve my game management. It’s different coming from schoolboy and academy level to seniors because you have to have a much greater understanding of how to manage a game, especially as a scrum-half in terms of box kicking.”
Weimann admits the pain endured from his Sarries release but hopes how he’s bounced back will inspire other young players that suffer the same news to react the same.
“It’s not nice being released, but I think my advice would be it’s never your last opportunity,” said Weimann. “You might think that that’s your career done, but there’s plenty more opportunities along the line.
You can come into rugby at pretty much at any age. I went away and worked hard on my game and then got picked up while at school. I’d say not to panic, not to think that your career is over, just keep working hard and you never know when the opportunity might come.”
