Gloucester offer James Hook route back with Wales

James Hook has targeted trophy success with Gloucester as a means of nailing down a Wales starting spot ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup.
Marquee-signing Hook spent the summer sifting contract offers after suffering the ignominy of relegation in his final season with Top 14 side Perpignan.
And having pinned his colours to the Kingsholm mast, he is determined to fulfil the vast potential that has earned him 76 caps.
“I’ve achieved a lot of things I dreamed about growing up, but if you ask any player you’re never completely fulfilled and you want to keep challenging yourself to try and win trophies and do the best you can,” Hook, 29, told The Rugby Paper.
“I still have international aspirations as well so it’s hard to say I’m fulfilled, but I’m just working as hard as I can to achieve the best that I can.
“I didn’t have a lot of time to think about things this summer – Perpignan got relegated in May so I had to look for another club.
“I had options in France, Japan and Wales but when Gloucester came up and I met with them, having played there many times and knowing what the fans are like, the opportunity to play in the Premiership is something that grabbed me.
“Gloucester’s a great club, there’s so much history there, and with all the signings and the new coaching team, it’s somewhere I wanted to go.
“It’s a tough league but the crowds in the Premiership are fantastic and every week you’re up against world-class players and I want to challenge myself to do well in that environment.”
Hook faces stiff competition for a Wales place from Dan Biggar, Rhys Priestland, Rhys Patchell and newly signed Cardiff Blues Kiwi Gareth Anscombe.
But he believes Gloucester’s proximity to Wales, allied to some club success, will enable him to catch the eye of boss Warren Gatland.
“I hope it does,” Hook said. “With the signings we’ve made we want to be up there competing and hopefully we’ll be able to do that.
“I want to play for Wales but that’s out of my hands a bit, so the important thing for me is playing well for my club. That’s all I can do.
“I’d be lying if I said I’ve played the amount I’ve wanted for Wales recently because I haven’t, but Gloucester’s a fresh challenge and I’m looking no further than that.”
Despite ending his time in France being relegated, Hook considers his three years in Catalonia to have been a positive experience.
He said: “It didn’t end on the note I wanted and relegation was obviously disappointing, but I learned a lot from a rugby point of view and just going out there with my family and experiencing a completely new culture was tremendous.
“My boy speaks French now, which is great for him, and getting out of Wales and travelling was something rugby’s allowed me to do.
“I’m just thrilled to bits to have had the chance to do it, and now I’ve got the chance to come to Gloucester and help them challenge for things.”
Hook has been impressed by his Gloucester experience so far, but warns fans not to expect overnight miracles.
With star signings Richard Hibbard, John Afoa and Greig Laidlaw joining Hook, the Kingsholm faithful expect a vast improvement.
Hook added: “It’s a great squad. Everyone’s talking about the signings we’ve made, but the players already here are pretty special as well.
“There’s a lot of English internationals like Billy Twelvetrees, Jonny May and Ben Morgan and some of the young guys coming through make it a great mix.
“But we don’t want to get carried away, we’ve got to take it one step at a time. It’s a new coaching set-up and new team, so we can’t get ahead of ourselves.
“It’s a big challenge and we’re not to expect too much too soon. We’re all up to win things but we can’t put too much pressure on ourselves.”
NEALE HARVEY