Bowe aiming to grasp final opportunity

Johnny Wattersonfinds the Ulster and Ireland winger fully focused on the game against Scotland

It has been a sharp-enough learning curve for the Ulster and Ireland winger Tommy Bowe. Throughout the ups and downs he may have whimsically wished at points along the line that he had stuck with Gaelic football, which this weekend might have brought the former county minor to Croke Park with Monaghan.

Still, the way Bowe sees it, he remains in the frame for a plane ticket to France, and to listen to the 23-year-old reflect on what has happened to him over the past 12 months is to be made aware the callow edges have been knocked off.

The 2007 edition of Bowe is less boyish than the 2006 version. A year ago Bowe was full of what international rugby could offer him. He dreamed the dream and would have seen a career path spread out in front of him with a green shirt on his back. Full of promise, Bowe was capped early by Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan but along the short path between then and now he lost his footing.

The 6ft 3in wing will start on the left flank this weekend and, bitten by the vagaries of reality - form, injury and combinations of both - he has not quite made the impact he had wanted. But he's been knocked about by the game enough to now know Scotland represent for him a final roll of the dice for this World Cup. His young career has reached a rather brutal and poignant stage.

"There is a different pressure for this game," he says. "This is the biggest game that I've played in for a long time. Maybe it's the biggest I've played in ever."

Bowe is thinking right. The game is pivotal for his momentum at international level as well as for his confidence.

When he looks at what O'Sullivan has on offer and also considers the former rugby league international Brian Carney has thrown his name into the hat, Bowe knows the competition for what are likely to be back-up roles to the frontline wingers is formidable.

"Even if Brian Carney hadn't come in you still look around and see Rob Kearney and Luke Fitzgerald still hot on the heels," he says. "There's also Andrew Trimble and Denis Hickie and Shane Horgan, not to mention Geordan Murphy. Competition is very high and places on the wings are keenly contested. But you see very few positions where there is no competition."

Brian O'Driscoll said on Tuesday international rugby was about taking the chance when it arose. With O'Sullivan in charge such essential truths will be sharply drawn. He is not a coach to confuse his players about what is expected and this ruthless approach has also become part of Bowe's thinking.

"I can't take things for granted. Obviously I slipped up, slipped in a few places," he says critically. "But I'm 23 years old and will slip and rise over the next few years. I've always liked to think I've taken pressure quite well and that I can step up to the mark.

"Sometimes I haven't taken my chances. Against France (2007 Six Nations) I lost confidence early on in the game and struggled. Soon after that I took a knock and I didn't know what was going on. That has brought on a different attitude when playing.

"I think that experience is a big thing and now I've played enough internationals to know what the standard is. Mentally, yes, that is a key issue."

Bowe's observations suggest a new and growing maturity. He has played nine times for Ireland and yearns for much more, hoping his natural talent will combine with some form and opportunity in Murrayfield.

"For the last four years people have been looking forward to this World Cup and it is exciting to have been given the chance to get there," he says. "Everyone has been thinking like that. Now, there is no better way to see if we deserve it than by being given an international match."

In Argentina he hurt himself early in the first test and ended up frustrated. "Small things are holding me back," he comments.

If Bowe gets his timing right, it will make this weekend a success. That would mean the stark difference between World Cup duty and pre-season training with Ulster.