Speed king on right track

The buzz of anticipation, bottoms sliding forward to the edge of a seat hardly noticing the adrenalin infusion: speed thrills and sporting enthusiasts crave that rush whether it is the men's 100 metres Olympic final or the technically more mundane sight of a wing three-quarter galloping clear at Lansdowne Road, particularly on the afternoon of an international.

Denis Hickie inspires this seminal instinct, the epitome of fluid motion, boasting a sprinter's style that highlights an athletics background. He has already treated Irish fans to two wonderful moments in a fledgling career spanning six caps, the most poignant, the raw speed with which he blasted onto Jim Staples's kick ahead to score a try at Murrayfield last season.

The 21-year-old St Mary's College player conjures an impression of blistering pace, but according to him, while there are no mirrors involved, it is something of an illusion. "If I were to race Linford Christie over 100 metres, he would beat me by 25 metres, simple as that, no argument.

"When Carl Lewis ran 9.86 in the World Championship 100 metres final in Toyko, every one in that race ran under 10 seconds, yet there was eight metres between first and last. Even someone like Brive wing Sebastien Carrat boasts a time that would make him 10 metres quicker than me.

"I ran in several schools' international athletic meets, never in that many with electronic timing. I think 10.8 seconds is about the quickest time I managed.

"I have never done well at sprint tests for rugby. Jan Cunningham, James Topping and John McWeeney have all run faster times. When I was with Leinster in England we did the same test, using machines and running through beams. I finished behind Marcus Dillon, John (McWeeney) and Darragh O'Mahony.

"But later on that day I raced against the other guys in 10 sprints and I won nine so I reckon it must be that competitive factor."

Schoolboy summers were spent on the track with Metropolitan Harriers, enjoying the demands and the discipline of athletics. Last summer, Hickie found that rugby demands obliterated his old schedule.

"There was just no way that I could combine the two. I know that I could be faster if I was doing more athletics with athletics coaches. In fairness things have improved in rugby circles in terms of the speed work, I have felt myself getting quicker even over the last two weeks."

Hickie has an outstanding rugby pedigree through father Tony and his uncle Denis, to whom Denis junior attributes all his success.

A high achiever from an early age, Hickie easily graduated through the accepted IRFU structure of representative rugby from Leinster through to Irish Schools, scoring four tries against Scotland at Thomond Park on one occasion for the latter.

He played for Ireland under-21s as a 19-year-old, but it was at this particular underage level that Hickie's meteoric rise stuttered. A minor part in a Triple Crown success, to go with the one he won at Schools level, should have preceded a central role the following year, but the progression wasn't realised.

"I got injured and could not play at the start of the season. James (Topping) and Jan (Cunningham) were both regulars on the Ulster team, while I had only started to play friendlies by the end of October. Even then I would have to say that the other three guys were better than me. I did eventually get a game on the 21s that season.

"The thing that hurt most was the fact that I had played with most of those guys on the schools team; we were good and I would have liked if I could have been more involved at under-21 level that year." Hickie soon recovered from that career glitch, winning an A cap last season against France before profiting from an injury to James Topping to win his first senior cap.

He capped a superb individual display with a try and managed another against the Scots, two matches later, a solitary oasis in a desert of despair at Murrayfield. Inclusion in the Lions preliminary squad never fostered delusions of grandeur. "I never thought I was going to be picked at any stage, but it is certainly an ambition, the pinnacle in this sport."

Hickie missed the summer tour of New Zealand with a shoulder injury and struggled to discover his best form in the early season, prompting whispers about fallibility in the tackle.

"I know whether I have made a mistake and missed a tackle. Against Toulouse I was caught in the wrong position, saw the ball go out and turned to sprint. By the time I had done that, your man had gone inside me: it was a bad mistake but I didn't need a video to tell me that. I remember last year against England, because they scored, the ball was kicked down to Tony Underwood and he jinked past me. The fact that I ran up at full speed, making it so easy for him, was galling. I know when it is a lack of concentration and know when it is not.

"As long as I know what I have done wrong then I am happy that I won't repeat it. There was never a stage when I sat down and said, `oh my god I can't tackle'. I went through a phase when I switched over from left to right wing in mistiming tackles but it was a question of getting used to it."

The commonly held perception that Hickie is a natural right wing is misguided. He played all his rugby at school on the left and it was only when he went to UCD that he switched.

"That was because Darragh O'Mahony was their left wing so when I graduated to the firsts I was asked to play on the right. Given that I'm playing there against the Scots I'm glad I enjoyed a little refresher for Mary's last week. There are little things that are different like the hand in which you hold the ball.

"Back row moves generally go left to right, so rather than been involved offensively, I'll have to do more defending and it will be the same with box kicks which are kicked to the left wing more often than not."

Hickie relishes the demands imposed on the international players come the Five Nations Championship, and revels in the "international experience".

And the pressure that the Irish players face today? "We are aware of the external pressure imposed by the media and the genuine expectations of fans, but we have expectations too. The players want to win this to build up confidence about the way we are playing or trying to play.

"On a personal level as long as I have a personal memory bank of the other team then I'm happy. I used to get very nervous when I was younger, but I supposed being captain at school on the senior cup team helped. I would talk in the dressing-room, but only if I considered that I had something important to say.

"I always noticed that the more I talked the more nervous I made myself. It was different when I was captain because that was a different kind of talking. I'm just looking forward to playing, getting away from the talking and finally being able to respond in the only way that matters - on the pitch."