Summoned to South Africa while in the middle of eating a schnitzel at a Sydney pub, Wallabies prop Harry Johnson-Holmes got his first taste of Test rugby in Johannesburg.
The 22-year-old got a phone call on Tuesday night from Australia coach Michael Cheika telling him to put down his knife and fork after three props were ruled out through injury.
Just a few days later Johnson-Holmes was scrummaging against “The Beast”, South Africa’s Tendai Mtawarira, at Ellis Park when the Wallabies lost another prop, James Slipper, early in the second half.
Even the Rugby Championship match-day program editors were caught out, forced to used a photo of Johnson-Holmes in his Waratahs gear with none available in the Wallabies kit.
Before Slipper’s injury Johnson-Holmes said he wasn’t sure if he’d actually get any game time or would see out the match on the bench.
“A lot of luck was involved in me being in the position of being on the bench but getting on the field was a whole other thing,” he said.
“I remember sitting on the bench and thinking to myself, ‘I’ve probably got about 15-20 minutes before I’ve got to start actually thinking about the mental side of jumping onto the field’ but it was a couple of seconds later that I found myself out in the scrum and from there it was a bit of a blur.”
Johnson-Holmes had no time to contemplate what he was taking on, thrown straight into a scrum.
“I think it was probably the best way I could’ve asked to get on the field as it’s something that I love and also it’s a lot less running than if it was a lineout or something,” he said.
“It was nice to jump on there and get amongst the boys I suppose as the forward pack welcomed me out when I got there, and it was pretty special.”
Cheika gave Johnson-Holmes the thumbs up.
“I think he handled it quite well, considering he’d come in with only two days prep. He certainly did himself proud in being out there,” Cheika said.
While hopeful he gets another run when the Wallabies host Argentina in Brisbane on Saturday, Johnson-Holmes would like other rewards to come from his Test endeavours.
“I’m hoping to get a few free schnitzels out of it,” he said.
“I’m hoping they rename it Harry Johnson-Holmes Tuesday night schnitzels.”