Wilson plotting wake-up call for Quins

As the first, and perhaps only, member of the World Cup-winning Wallaby élite to settle in Britain this week, David Wilson is serious news. Had he turned up last week, he would have found his thunder stolen by a fellow Queenslander, Tim Horan: when it comes to column inches, a glamour-puss like Horan will always lord it over a bashed-up flanker burdened with the nickname "Stinky". But Wilson's sense of timing has never been less than exquisite, and the fact that he actually intends to play tomorrow, rather than operate the half-time tombola as his countryman did at Saracens five days ago, makes him the man of the moment.

As the first, and perhaps only, member of the World Cup-winning Wallaby élite to settle in Britain this week, David Wilson is serious news. Had he turned up last week, he would have found his thunder stolen by a fellow Queenslander, Tim Horan: when it comes to column inches, a glamour-puss like Horan will always lord it over a bashed-up flanker burdened with the nickname "Stinky". But Wilson's sense of timing has never been less than exquisite, and the fact that he actually intends to play tomorrow, rather than operate the half-time tombola as his countryman did at Saracens five days ago, makes him the man of the moment.

The question is this: might he also turn out to be the man of the Premiership season? It is an even-money bet. Wilson may be a 33-year-old veteran of 78 Wallaby Tests, but he is no one's idea of an arthritic has-been; indeed, those familiar with the dark arts of the back-row business regard him as the most effective open-side specialist in the game - more consistent than Josh Kronfeld, more disciplined than Olivier Magne, more learned than Mauro Bergamasco, more streetwise than Neil Back.

Harlequins, who are playing rather better rugby than their one-from-five record suggests, have installed their prize summer signing as captain, although Wilson will not lead the side for another fortnight or so. "He'll need a settling-in period, naturally, but he's everything we're looking for," beamed Mark Evans, the Quins chief executive, at the Stoop Memorial Ground this week. "You name it, he's got it: he's fit, focused, mature, professional, serious. He's used to winning, and he knows what winning involves." So there you have it. Quins believe they have bought themselves a brain, a backbone and a conscience, rolled into one.

All of which makes you wonder why the Australians let him go in the first place; after all, the Wallabies are not exactly models of insouciance when it comes to northern hemisphere outfits pilfering their crown jewels. John O'Neill, the chief executive of the Australian Rugby Union, blew a gasket the size of Sydney Opera House when Jason Jones-Hughes declared himself a Welshman last year, and it is safe to assume that he is not performing cartwheels in celebration of the recent departures of Wilson, Horan, Jason Little and Dan Crowley - old-stagers, certainly, but worth their weight in experience. If John Eales suddenly surfaces at Rotherham on a two-year contract with a coaching option, O'Neill will head straight for the Harbour Bridge.

"I think there is some concern in Australia about the numbers of players leaving," agreed Wilson in his understated, slightly defensive manner. "I can see where they're coming from, too. Back home, they spend a good deal of money developing talent and they would like to keep that talent in Australia. Instead, they see players coming to Europe - not just to England, but to France, too. Yes, there is a good deal of discomfort about this, but from my own perspective I can only say that the ARU has been very supportive of my decision to move. I guess it would have been a whole lot different if I'd been 23 rather than 33, but as it is I'm here with their blessing. The Wallaby management might even give me a call if they get hit by injuries when they tour up here in the autumn."

Wilson concluded that he would not be on that tour some months ago; like Horan and the rest, he figured that a World Cup victory on foreign soil, achieved in Cardiff last November, was as good as it was likely to get. He stayed on for the first southern hemisphere campaign of the new century - there was plenty to tickle his discerning fancy, what with an inaugural Mandela Cup match with South Africa, a historic if ill-conceived indoor Test in Melbourne and the challenge of winning a first Tri-Nations title for his country - but the die was already cast. The moment the fun stopped down south, he and his young family would head north.

"It was pretty obvious that I wasn't going to make it to the next World Cup in 2003, so it was the right moment to leave from all points of view: there are some talented open-sides coming through in Australia (two of whom, the 20-year-old George Smith from the ACT Brumbies and the similarly youthful Phil Waugh from the New South Wales Waratahs, will be on the gallops in Europe this autumn) and the start of a World Cup cycle is as good a time as any to take a look at them.

"Of course, the prospect of playing against the Lions next year was a big temptation; they're the only major side I haven't competed against and I know that a goal-focused coach like Rod Macqueen will want to beat them, even though the Wallaby side is about to go through an experimental stage.

"Sure, it would have been good to have been a part of that, but in the end, there were other considerations that mattered more."

What matters to Harlequins - a new, unfamiliar, non-glitzy, blue-collar Harlequins who, for the first time in living memory, are attempting to play for 80 minutes a match rather than 80 minutes a season - is that Wilson provides the focal point they crave. Needless to say, he is aware of expectations. "I'd say Quins are the best-known of all the English clubs, certainly where I come from, and it's a privilege to be asked to lead them," he said. "I'm pretty laid back when it comes to leadership - I always look to others for some input and I like to make sure that everyone has a voice, from the oldest to the youngest - but that doesn't mean I don't take full responsibility. This is just the challenge I need at this stage of my career."

Wilson's initial challenge, however, will be to work out precisely how the game is played in this particular neck of the union woods. Of all positions, the open-side flanker is most vulnerable to the whims and fancies of the law-changers and rule-tinkerers: one week you can slip into a ruck from the side, the next you find yourself catching two trains and a bus, simply to arrive at the breakdown from a legal direction. The new boy is concerned, but not too concerned. "Hell, the flankers I know have been playing under new rules on an annual basis for as long as I can remember," he smiled.

"It's a frustration, getting used to a law that seems to work well and then seeing it changed the moment you've mastered it, but you learn to live with these things.

"The most important point is that rugby remains a game for all shapes and sizes. I know people up here are worried about union mutating into league, but I don't think it will happen. People remarked on the Wallaby back division during the World Cup, saying they were all 100kg and built on exactly the same lines. But there again, you can stand George Gregan next to John Eales and you won't see too many similarities. It's one aspect of the game that will never change."