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Gabriel Hamer-Webb was called into the Wales squad by Steve Tandy earlier this week
Given the nature of the last seven or so days, it would be easy for the Six Nations squad picked by Steve Tandy to not exactly fly on the radar of many.
Off-field politics have cast a shadow over pretty much everything this week, including the selection of a Wales squad aiming to end a three-year wait for a win in the tournament. But if many perhaps found it hard to muster much enthusiasm for Tandy’s selections, then for the one new face actually named in the squad, it was a different range of emotions entirely.
While the Welsh rugby world was coming to terms with more chaos, Gabriel Hamer-Webb was letting a first call-up to the national team sink in. Even now, he admits the achievement has yet to fully dawn on him.
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But, for a man whose rugby career has largely been on the road less travelled, this is some achievement.
“It’s been a pretty cool week for myself and my family,” the 25-year-old tells WalesOnline. “I think they’ve maybe enjoyed it more than I have, which is always fun to see.
“It’s been a proud week. It still hasn’t set in yet. I’m not sure it will until I’m in with the boys and getting stuck in. I got the call from Steve Tandy the night before I was called up, so I had to keep that to myself.
“The reaction from my mum was maybe the best part of it. A good amount of tears and a good amount of smiles too.
“That was the best part, telling my sisters and mum in the group chat call and getting their reaction.”
It is through his mum, born in Cardiff, that Hamer-Webb qualifies for Wales. Pulling on the red jersey has long been an ambition of the wing, even after leaving Cardiff for Leicester Tigers last summer.
“I think people got the wrong idea when I left Cardiff, that I was leaving that aspiration behind. But it was still up there for me. I spoke to Steve before the autumn, but you never know if you’re getting called up, so it was a good surprise.”
And, having lost both his father and brother in recent years, a poignant one at that.
“I lost my father when I was 18 and then I lost my brother last year,” he says. “It was two quite big figures in my family.
“Being the only Hamer-Webb man left in my family and having to push forward and look after my family in that sense was big for me.
“My family got a lot smaller. It’s just me, my sisters and my mum in my instant family.
“It’s tough to say, really. There’s some pressure on myself to fill the shoes of my father.
“But ultimately, looking after each other and the way it’s brought my family together is the main part – we appreciate everything that little bit more.
“I know the old man would be looking down and be proud. That’s all I can really ask for.”
This weekend saw Hamer-Webb celebrate his call-up with a first try for Leicester, having joined them from Cardiff at the start of the season. The wing has enjoyed something of a varied career before that, with a spell in New Zealand with Southlands prior to heading to the Welsh capital.
“It’s not one I imagined myself having when I started my career at Bath,” he admits. “But it’s one I’m very, very grateful for what it’s taught me and how it’s shaped me as a man.
“Travelling to the other side of the world is no mean feat. So that teaches you a lot.
“And then working my way back into European rugby and getting to Cardiff then Leicester, it’s been a hell of a journey for myself.
“Not an easy one whatsoever. One of many highs but also many lows. I think it’s the journey that has got me to the point where I am to be called up by Wales.”
That call-up with Wales will see him reunited with former Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt, who is currently drawing up Wales’ attack.
In the past, those wearing the 11 jersey in a Sherratt backline seem to have benefitted when it comes to getting to the try-line – just ask Hamer-Webb about his hat-trick in Judgement Day last season.
“It’s going to be great working alongside him because there were so many things he’s taught me and I really appreciate how his coaching style works on me,” says Hamer-Webb. “It really does work well with me.
“We got along really well. He had a couple of nicknames for me. But I’ve been looking at Wales’ system to familiarise myself with it and it’s one I’m used to.
“There are different parts from stuff I’ve seen before, so it’s something I can plug myself into and really push myself to make the most of it.”
When it comes to what Hamer-Webb believes he could bring to the Test game, it’s an area that has become increasingly important in the modern game.
With the lack of escort runners and blockers, the aerial game has become more of a source of attacking possession – with Hamer-Webb describing the ability to take the ball in the air as “gold dust right now”.
“My aerial work is something that’s massive in the back-three right now,” he says. “It’s very important to be good in the air, both in attack and defence.
“I think it’s something you have to have now. It’s not an option. Teams that don’t have the ability to do that, it’s a weak spot that you can go after.
“You look at the lads in the Wales squad. Tom Rogers is outstanding in the air. (Louis) Rees-Zammit too. They absolutely go after it. It’s something I want to add to.
“Test rugby will of course be faster and it’s about reacting quicker, but it’s doing what you do at your club and being confident to do things.
“But I think my gritty work-rate, which has only been pushed on since joining Leicester, will help me at that level.”
The road less travelled has taken Hamer-Webb to this point. Now, it would seem, it’s just the start.
