Hugh Roach
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Hugh Roach | ||
| Born |
11 September 1992 Sydney, Australia | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Weight | 105 kg (16 st 7 lb) | ||
| School(s) attended | Newington College | ||
| Club information | |||
| Playing position | Hooker | ||
| Current club | Waratahs | ||
| Amateur team(s) | |||
| Years | Team | ||
| 2012– | Eastwood | 47 | (65) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Pts)† |
| 2014– | Waratahs | 21 | (0) |
| 2014– | Greater Sydney Rams | 10 | (5) |
| Representative team(s)‡ | |||
| 2009-2010 | Australia Schoolboys | 11 | () |
| 2011–12 | Australia Under 20 | 7 | (15 (3 tries)) |
|
* Senior club appearances and points correct as of 11 July 2016. | |||
Hugh Roach (born 11 September 1992) is an Australian rugby union player who currently plays as a hooker for the Waratahs in Super Rugby.[1][2]
Family and early life
Roach was born in Sydney. He played his junior rugby at Hunters Hill Rugby Club, and attended Newington College. His father, Graham Roach, was also a first grade rugby player who played at hooker for Western Suburbs in the Shute Shield competition.[3]
Roach was an Australia Schoolboys representative in 2009 and 2010,[1] and is currently the equal most capped schools rugby player in Australia.[4] He was also a member of the Australia Under 20 side for both the 2011 where he made 3 appearances (Fiji, Samoa, New Zealand) and 2012 IRB Junior World Championships where he was capped a further 4 times ( Scotland, Argentina, France twice).[5][6]
Rugby Career
Roach initially made his name playing for Eastwood in the Shute Shield competition and was named Rookie of the Year after the 2013 tournament. This good form saw him picked by the Western Force for their match against the British and Irish Lions in June 2013.[1]
He made the Waratahs extended playing squad for the 2014 Super Rugby season as third-choice hooker behind Tatafu Polota-Nau and Tolu Latu. An injury to Latu in the latter stages of the season saw Roach earn his first Super Rugby cap as a second-half substitute in the Waratahs 41-13 victory over the Lions on 18 May 2014.[7]
The 2015 season brought further success on the field with Roach earning a further 6 Super Rugby caps for the Waratahs including starting in two fixtures in South Africa against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein and Lions in Johannesburg. In the domestic club competition, he added another Shute Shield grand final win (his second in three GF appearances) in a performance that saw him voted the Man of the Match by the TV broadcast team.
The 2016 season saw Roach earn a further 13 appearances for the Waratahs with 4 starting selections and 9 appearances off the bench. With a winning percentage of 86% when coming onto the field as a "finisher" Roach has earned a reputation as a successful high energy boost to the team at around the 60 minute mark. With a total of 21 super appearances under his belt the Tahs prioritized the re-signing of Roach in June 2016 committing him for a further 2 seasons at Moore Park.
References
- 1 2 3 "Hugh Roach Waratahs Player Profile". Waratahs Rugby. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Hugh Roach Player Statistics". itsrugby. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Young gun Roach is Europe bound". Hunters Hill Rugby. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
- ↑ "Players with three or more "Caps" for the period 1973-2011". Australian Schools Rugby Union. 2011. Archived from the original on 26 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
- ↑ "Hugh Roach IRB JWC Player Profile". IRB.com. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Australian Under 20s Squad Named for 2012". Rugby Australia. 2 May 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Waratahs vs Lions 18 May 2014 Match Breakdown". SA Rugby. Retrieved 19 May 2014.