Copyright walesonline
New Wales recruit Olly Cracknell could finally get his first international cap over the coming weeks after replacing Taulupe Faletau in Steve Tandy's squad. For Leeds-born Cracknell, it will be deserved reward at 31 after first being brought into the Welsh system by a persistent former Wales star. Former scrum-half Rupert Moon, who was previously appointed as the Welsh Rugby Union's North Wales development officer in 2012, got wind of Cracknell's talents when he was a teenager playing out in South Africa. He used his powers of persistence, admitting he "stalked" the youngster in a bid to convince him to join RGC. His efforts were successful, setting Cracknell on a path that would earn him a Wales Under-20s call-up and a successful move to the Ospreys, where he thrived under now Wales coach Steve Tandy. “Olly had registered on the WRU website as a Welsh exile when he was 16,” Moon previously told WalesOnline. “Anyone who was born in Wales or has Welsh heritage can register and he knew his grandfather was from Llanelli . “You can identify players from that list who you might be interested in and it was my job to talk to them. Olly was one of those. He was playing in South Africa at the time. “He had gone on tour there with Leeds Grammar School and decided to pay his own way to go back and join the Borders Academy in East London, where he stayed for eight months. “I know from speaking to him about it that it was pretty brutal. He was training four times a day, sharing a room, but he wanted that personal and rugby development. “He ended up playing in places like Loftus Versfeld and Newlands, which was a great experience for him. "Fortunately, I had contacts out there through an international exchange programme we ran in north Wales, where young players from underprivileged areas in South Africa would come over to us and we would send youngsters over there for a life experience. “Through those contacts I managed to speak to Olly’s coaches and they said he was a good guy, determined and a hard worker, but needed to bulk up. “So I set about trying to talk to him and stalked him for about three months. I was emailing him and trying to track him down. “Then after a few months, he responded and said he was coming back to the UK in a few weeks' time. This was about November 2013.” Moon then had to convince the young Cracknell north Wales was the best place for his development. It was a sales pitch that ultimately worked. “I said to come and have a look at us and see the facilities we have,” recalled Moon. “I met him at Parc Eirias and introduced him to Chris Horsman, who was head coach at the time. We outlined the dream and the vision to him, which was to be in the Premiership within five years and to be a region within 10 years. “But we also said if you are good enough and work hard enough you can pass through quickly on to a higher level. “He had an opportunity to join the Academy at Leeds, in his home city. But he chose us. I just think it was the facilities and the people and the fact he could see the WRU had put a clear development plan in place for him, both on and off the field. “They drew up a programme to physically develop him and get him to the weight he needed to be in order to be in contention in the back row.” “He was about 15st 7lbs when he arrived with us and we had to get him up to around 17st 7lbs. “I got Edwards butchers of Conwy to sponsor him by supplying him with meat and chicken. We quite literally beefed him up! “Credit to the lad, he trained his socks off and was very dedicated. “He played his first game for us in early January 2014. He came on as a blood replacement against Narberth and scored a try! So he made an immediate impression.” Such was the impact Cracknell made in his first few games that he was fast-tracked into the Wales U20s set up and made his debut against Scotland in March. Then, that summer, he was snapped up by the Ospreys where he became a real favourite and enjoyed a close relationship with Tandy, who he credits for improving his game during his time as head coach, which ended in 2018. Cracknell was called into the Wales squad by Roby Howley in 2017 but never actually earned a cap. He made 177 appearances for the Welsh region before leaving for London Irish in 2021 following the appointment of Toby Booth, eventually ending up at Leicester Tigers in 2022. “A new coach came in and didn’t appear to see in me what others had seen,” said Cracknell of his time at the Ospreys. “That’s fair enough. “Coaches are paid to pick the team and people have different ideas about what they want, while new players also come through. “I’d been very lucky at the Ospreys after joining them. I got on very well with Steve Tandy and he developed me a lot. It went on for a few years after Steve left. “Obviously, the new team wanted to change things up and I was left in the cold a bit. I was left looking for a change. “I certainly don’t have any regrets. “I had an amazing time at the Ospreys after joining them when I was young." As for Moon, he is far from surprised by Cracknell's career success over the years, adding: “He is a classic professional, he is a good kid. I am very proud to have played a small part in his story. “I did the stalking and got him to have a look, but there were a lot of other people involved. There was the WRU and the local council for developing the facilities at Parc Eirias. “There were impressive individuals like Chris Horsman and Gethin Watts, from the WRU, who were able to identify a clear pathway for him. There was the team and all the coaches around him. “And there was the player himself for making the choice to come. “It was a co-ordinated effort. I was just one piece in the jigsaw, but I am very happy to have been that piece.” Follow all of our channels to ensure you stay up to date with the latest Welsh rugby news. Sign up to our free daily newsletter here and our WhatsApp channel here for all the breaking news. You can also follow us on social media on our X account , Facebook , Instagram and TikTok. For more exclusive stories and in-depth analysis, you can sign up for the Inside Welsh Rugby substack newsletter here.
