Betfair Big Interview: Jamie Thackray

Super League / Ralph Ellis / 17 March 2010 / Leave a Comment

Jamie Thakray in his days as a Hull player

"Gareth's surprised me, to be honest, shocked me even because he's been a bit fiery and fast in training and I don't think he'll look out of place at all."

Former British Lion Gareth Thomas switches codes into Super League on live TV on Friday night when his new club Crusaders play Catalans - Betfair went to North Wales to ask former Great Britain prop Jamie Thackray what we can expect. . .

Hi Jamie, let's cut straight to the chase, how's Gareth going to get on?

I think really good. He's surprised me, to be honest, shocked me even because he's been a bit fiery and fast in training and I don't think he'll look out of place at all. He's a big strong thing, good feet and fast and he looks like he's picked it up pretty quick.

Will he get a big welcome from your crowd?

That's for certain. I'm looking forward to seeing him play myself, and the other players are, so there's no doubt the supporters are. We've had two really good home crowds so far with a sell-out in our first match against Leeds, and with Gareth making his debut it's going to be pretty full again.

There's big expectations on him, though, because not many switch codes successfully...

You're right about that, but he looks really switched on and I'm pretty sure he will go well. We're all really up for it.

It sounds like a new lease of life for you after leaving Hull?

I've enjoyed every minute so far. It's gone far better than anybody could have expected when you think we're a completely new team with 15 or 16 new players. The way the club has had to be put back together in a hurry has been exciting more than anything, but it wasn't a hard decision to make to sign, with Brian Noble in charge and Jon Sharp and Lestyn Harris too.

What about for your own form?

Because I didn't sign until mid-January I didn't do a proper pre-season but I'm getting stronger with every game and I think it's gradually coming. As a team we had a terrific second half at St Helens last week and you can see we're improving. It was just a shame we didn't get off the bus in the first half! I'm 30 now and I've realised how to look after myself properly. I hardly go out any more and I think I'm fitter now than when I was 20, and I've improved loads as a player because of it. I just wish I had started it earlier.

So why is Brian Noble so good to work for?

I don't know, he's just a character really. He knows how to bring the best from players, he's been around and done it all, he's seen that many cup finals and challenge cup finals and premeirship finals, he took Bradford to the top, he's been there and done it all.

We heard he's a friend of Martin O'Neill. It sounds like the same type of man management.

You may be right. We went down to Aston Villa for a week's training camp before the season. We were based at their training ground at Bodymoor Heath which is all new and really state of the art. What an amazing place! They looked after us so well, with the chef and everything. We got on great and then all went to watch them play in the Carling Cup semi-final against Blackburn. A 10 goal thriller. It was brilliant.

Going back to Wrexham must have been hard after a week's Premier League luxury?

Actually, the structure at Crusaders is better than you'd think considering how quickly it's been done. We're using the university for all our fitness work, we've got a good training ground, and it's all going along nicely. That's a sign that Brian Noble won't take second best.

Apart from Gareth and yourself he's signed some strong players too.

What struck me when I started working here was that there's some experienced players but we're a big athletic team too. With a few more weeks of training and games under our belt we'll be competitive - we've already shown we won't finish bottom like most thought we would.

Has all the community work the club were doing in South Wales been moved north too?

That's one of the things I like about the club. There's a big emphasis on youth development in schools and you can see the people on the streets are buzzing about us being in Wrexham. If we keep playing well it will get even bigger. I've said before that playing Rugby League changed my life because I was a right little bugger before I took up the game when I was 16, and it gave me a bit of focus. If we can get other kids into doing something they like then it puts them on the right path.

Thanks for your time, good luck on Friday and we've a free £50 bet for a favourite charity.

That can go to the Steve Prescott Foundation, and after the week we had at Bodymoor Heath I'm backing Villa to win the FA Cup at [5.6].