A phone call from former Connacht Rugby boss Andy Friend has changed the course of Shamus Hurley-Langton’s career.
It came at a good time. Making a name for himself in New Zealand, playing with the Wellington U19s, he had harboured high hopes of competing in the World Under 20 championship for his country of birth.
It could well have been a pathway to much bigger things, but Covid-19 struck, the tournament was cancelled and Hurley-Langton headed 100 miles north to join Manawatu – a province noted for former All Black legends Christian Cullen, Frank Oliver, Gary Knight and Ken Granger.
He made a promising start, winning Manawatu’s 2020 Rookie of the Year award, and although named in the wider training squad for the Hurricanes, he missed out.
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It was then he received the call from Connacht.
“It was a hard decision to be honest,” the 23-year-old says. “I am a long way from home and my family, but there was no interest from Super teams – a little bit of interest from the Hurricanes – so I thought here is a team in Ireland who wants to invest time in me and help me grow as a rugby player.
“That was my thought process, and as well as that, I cannot make a living playing NPC with Manawatu, so there was a financial theme. I was just getting out of university and starting to make a life for myself, so that was part of it – standing on my own two feet.”
Born in Opunake – the birthplace of New Zealand’s famous middle distance runner Peter Snell – his dad James Langton, a boxing champion, played rugby for the same club as the famous Barrett family. Although Hurley-Langton was offered a place in the Taranaki Rugby Academy, he opted instead to study design and communication at Victoria University in Wellington after leaving Francis Douglas Memorial School in New Plymouth.
With a name like Hurley, coming from his mother Pauline Hurley, there are also Irish connections, but he says they are too long past to be Irish qualified.
“There is Irish blood. Hurley is my last name and my mum’s father was Shamus. I am not sure why he spelt it the way he did, maybe because they wanted to spell it phonetically. In New Zealand people probably would not be aware of how to pronounce Irish names.”
Now Hurley-Langton is content making a name for himself in Connacht – his current 10 turnovers is the second best in the URC this season, and in his 11 starts this season, he has already scored three tries. In all, he has made 32 appearances, 27 as a starter.
The 23-year-old, who has extended his contract to remain at Dexcom Stadium till 2025, says it is the right move for him.
“Any decision like that, no matter how much I have enjoyed my time here or how successful the team has been, you have to look at all the options. But once I weighed it up, it was the right move for me. I really enjoy playing here, I like the brand of footy we play.
“I get my hands on the ball here – it’s a bit frustrating in NZ sometimes when you are playing flanker there, you get put on the wing a lot. But here they trust me with the ball, even when I am on the wing. They want hands on the ball, and I have a licence to play, so I enjoy it way more here.”
There is much at stake when Connacht face Benetton on Saturday – both currently share 33 points in ninth and 10th place respectively as they seek at least a top eight spot.
“It is something of a test match for us. A chance to play a quality side with good internationals, so it is an opportunity to test ourselves against the best,” he says.
“There is more room for improvement – always room for improvement – constantly sharpening our skills. We are a similar situation to last year, but there is no reason to panic. I fully expect us to the in the top eight, and in the top half of that top eight.”
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