Before travelling to Canberra, Waratahs coach Dan McKellar found himself urging media to be patient with exciting Brumbies playmaker Declan Meredith and temper their expectations of a young player still learning his trade in Super Rugby.
Shortly after celebrating a crucial 30-28 victory that has righted the Waratahs’ listing ship, McKellar was doing it again – but this time with his own player: 20-year-old fullback Sid Harvey, whose nerveless place kicking kept the Brumbies at bay.
Harvey successfully kicked three penalties in the final 15 minutes, each from distance and seemingly without any fear.
The fullback ended the night in Canberra with six out of six kicks at goal, after booting four from four in the loss to the Blues last Saturday. McKellar knows there is far more to come from Harvey, but is urged media and fans not to expect too much of a player still finding his feet in professional rugby.
“He’s a tremendous young kid, a good country boy,” McKellar said. “He comes from a lovely family. Sid’s 20, but you’d think he was 28. He’s naturally pretty gifted, he’s just got that little bit of time and class about him, so I think he’s in for a long career.
“I think he can play at the highest level in time, as I said during the week with Deckie [Meredith], we’ve just got to let him develop and become a really good Super Rugby player first – and higher accolades will come off the back of that.”
Harvey was playing colts rugby for Easts against teenagers last year. Now, he is facing seasoned Test players in Super Rugby – and thriving.
Harvey is a popular member of the Waratahs squad. Affable and down-to-earth, he was brought up on the family farm in Narrabri, where he was expected to help out while honing his prodigious talents in cricket and rugby.
Initially, Harvey favoured cricket, as a talented all-rounder who gained selection to the NSW Country squad. As an opening fast bowler, Harvey learned the value of a precise routine and accuracy. The line and length have just been transferred to the kicking tee.
On Friday, despite having trailed the Waratahs by 14 points, the Brumbies had recovered to square the match at 21-21 by the 65th minute and had the momentum going into the closing stages of the match. When the Waratahs were awarded a penalty over 40 metres out, captain Matt Phillip had no hesitation in calling for Harvey to step up and kick.
“I looked at him, I said, ‘Are you confident here?’ and he said, ‘Yep’, and we went for it. As Dan said, Sid’s got a bit of class about him,” Phillip said. “I’m so happy for him, the form he’s in, he deserves it and I hope it continues for him.”
Harvey has only played four games of Super Rugby, but underlined McKellar’s assertion that he acts older than his years when called for an interview with Stan Sport after the game.
Despite the microphone malfunctioning twice, Harvey was still able to articulate his thoughts perfectly.
The young fullback’s only brief moment of doubt came when his final kick was reviewed on the big screen and he wasn’t able to look due to frustration that the ball hadn’t perfectly bisected the posts.
Harvey’s calmness on and off the field has come at the urging of his parents Denis and Carmel, who regularly drive over six hours from Narrabri to catch his home games in Sydney.
“Whenever I used to play juniors, I was tense and trying to do everything, so I’d play awfully,” Harvey said.
“Dad would pull me up on it, he’d just say, ‘Mate, just relax, breathe out’. I find that if I’m at the back [playing fullback], that’s just when I’m comfortable. I can see the game. It probably looks like I’ve got a million thoughts running through my head, but I’m probably looking a bit more calm.”
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