When a rugby player whizzes the scale-dial round past the 19 stones-mark and earns his living as a prop forward, basically a glorified shover of human flesh, ‘enigma’ is not the first adjective that comes to mind. But then Oliver Tomaszczyk is not your average front row meat-head.
The 25-year-old former Worcester Warrior was back in the West Midlands last Saturday, as part of the Newcastle Falcons pack currently embarking on its ninth-month Shooting Barrel Fish tour of English rugby’s second tier.
The trademark floppy mop, sausage legs and human bowling ball approach to the sport were all evident in the ruthless 53-13 hammering of Moseley, as both collectively and individually the men from Kingston Park strive to restore their battered reputations.
Right from the disgraced Dean Richards at the top, through ex-England forwards coach John Wells to even the most fringe players at the bottom, everyone associated with the Newcastle first team is on the comeback trail. Tomaszczyk particularly.
The promising tighthead gave a decent account of himself, at scrum time especially where any technical issues were obscured by the fact he was heavier and stronger than his opposite number. Newcastle’s set piece went forward, usually on Tomaszczyk’s side.
Just as he did when he was at Sixways he bullocked around in the loose, exuberant with ball in hand and solid without it, before he was replaced by Rob Vickers with ten minutes to go. During his time at Worcester he completed 80 minutes on just three occasions, and not at all during last season, the second of his two frustrating years with the club.
And therein lies the rub, by his own admission the Oxford University graduate was characterised as lacking application, indeed he would never claim to have hit the heights predicted for him by Worcester’s head coach Richard Hill.
But that does not mean he accepts every criticism without offering mitigation.
“From the off, I spoke to Hilly about this, he thought I was a bit of a slob student and I think that impression stuck. I think I am to blame for that impression,” he admitted.
“But equally I think there were times when I was in better shape but I was still a bit of a sloth, that’s how it is. I am determined to play my cards differently at Newcastle. I got good advice from some players. James Percival said ‘Look it’s a fresh start, don’t get a reputation for being a slob or as someone who doesn’t care less’.”
Tomaszczyk’s detractors were happy to buy into the cliché and while they might have excused him for the odd injury, very few knew about the family bereavement that affected him deeply midway through last term.
“It felled my game,” he said. “I made my mind up by December or January that it was time to move on and once your gut feeling tells you that, you have to do it.”
As much as the decision to return to the club where he started his career might have been a relief, the Londoner was not yet off the hook. His final appearance came in the LV= Cup in January but his time at Sixways was to wind down with a sting in the tail.
“I remember my last night when it was a presentation evening and I got my photo from my team manager and he said ‘You haven’t fulfilled yourself, maybe you will do so under a stronger character up north’.
“I remember feeling very bitter about that. I analysed that, had a bad evening, left early from the dinner, went back home and I was flying to Bangkok the next day. I beat myself up about it and resolved to do better with my new opportunity, whether it was going to be Championship or anywhere else.”
Offers came from France but it was a return to the North East – and the chance to work with Richards who, whatever one might think about his conduct in the Bloodgate controversy at Harlequins, has a hugely impressive coaching record, that appealed most.
There was also a burning desire to heed Alun Carter’s words, the Worcester team manager, who had delivered that most painful of assessments.
“I just want to do myself justice. There have been a number of coaches and people in the game who said if I put my mind to it I could maybe do well.
“It was that kind of regret and I knew that if I didn’t come and give it a good shot I would regret it for a while.
“It was a fair criticism, he was very honest with me and I appreciated his honesty.
“That was the fuel for me on my way back, I didn’t want to feel unfulfilled like that.
“It’s a horrible feeling, when it comes to a close you often blame yourself. You can say ‘It was this, or that’ but in the final measure you look at yourself and say ‘I should have done better or I could have done better’ and there are all these hypotheses – ‘If I had done this I would maybe have done better’.”
The impression remains, though, that Tomaszczyk doesn’t actually need professional rugby. A man with a double first from Brasenose College in Modern Languages has options shared by few of his contemporaries who may have spent their formative years incarcerated in a rugby academy.
He insists that too is erroneous. “That thirst is still there, I wouldn’t be signing a three-year deal at Newcastle if I didn’t want to be. I feel I am applying myself a bit more, listening to people more. Dean was very adamant at the beginning of the season, he sat me down and said ‘Look, there’s no point having any talent if you just don’t listen or don’t apply yourself. Listen to people, work hard and be determined and I am sure you will reap the benefits’.
“To be fair to him I have listened to Wellsy, Micky Ward has been very patient at scrum time, our scrum is going from strength to strength and I am determined to keep going.
“I will look back with some fondness.
“I struggled with inconsistency and injury but fundamentally I think it was a good grounding.
“I met some good people and if anything if you have that kind of disappointment you use it as a positive at a new club and new place and you take that feeling of bitterness at your lack of fulfilment at the end of a season and think ‘Why’.
You can snatch something from it, snatch a few chestnuts from the fire.”
Which means when he does return to Sixways, probably with Newcastle next season, the Tomahawk may be an enigma no longer and the comments about his lifestyle will finally have been given the chop.
