KEMPSEY Cannonballer Jarrod Saul will jet off on an once-in-a-lifetime trip today.
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The talented Kempsey sports star is off to Germany for the next six months to play rugby union.
Saul is headed to the birthplace of German rugby, Hanover and will play for SC Germania List in the Bundesliga, the national top tier of the sport.
“It is all a bit scary and nerve-wracking but the excitement is overpowering it all,” Saul told the Argus on Monday morning.
It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks for the 21-year-old. The opportunity came about by chance for Saul. Over a couple of beverages at the Port Cup, he was talking to Kempsey Rugby Club president Bill Yabsley, who had lived in Germany and played for Rugby Klub 03 Berlin a couple of years ago.
Yabsley asked Saul if he would be interested in playing rugby in overseas.
“I said ‘I would love to do it’, but I thought nothing of it until Bill came and saw me with an email from Allan Nugent.”
Nugent is a Kempsey Cannonball stalwart and has been on the coaching team for Germania List since October this year. With his help, the opportunity was made available for Saul.
Last Tuesday Saul received the green light from the German club and found himself booking a flight to Germany and a return flight not until May 28 next year.
Allan Nugent made light of the conversation and is looking forward to sharing his rugby knowledge and experience
“It’s a great game rugby, the game can take you places that you never thought possible,” Nugent said.
“Jarrod will grow as a player and a person over here and will take home a wealth of knowledge about the game that you just can’t learn without experiencing it yourself.”
Saul flies out from Sydney this afternoon, a direct 24-hour flight to London, a short stop over before he flies to Hanover. Thursday will see him don the footy boots for his first training run with his new team mates, a captain’s run on Friday before he runs out on the field for his first game on Saturday.
“I am already on the run-on side, I just hope I don’t have bad jet lag so I can train well before the game,” Saul said.
Saul will stay with a Germany family and he is in the process of applying for a working visa.
“I am really looking forward to the whole experience, playing rugby with a whole different club in a whole different country,” he said.
“It will be interesting to see how they do things.”
For the past four years Saul has played both rugby union and rugby league in the Mid North Coast and Group 2 competitions. He played in this year’s Group 2 grand final for Nambucca Heads. He also plays for Nulla Cricket Club and is a handy batsmen.
He was a late bloomer when it came to football. His sporting focus in his younger days was baseball.
Saul is the fourth Cannonballer to play in the German competition and the club is keen to strengthen its ties with European clubs and assist other players from the valley also get the chance to experience life abroad.
Kempsey Rugby Club wishes Jarrod a safe journey and hopes the experience is one he will remember for many years to come.
