Gordon Bulloch Interview 24.8.2005
World class Hooker!
By apb
July 28 2006
After chatting to James Isaacson, the next person I managed to catch before all the players disappeared out the door was Gordon Bulloch. With hindsight, I asked him some predictable questions that he'd fielded a million times before! First off, I asked him how he'd found it in Leeds
GB: Oh, its been great, I've really been welcomed - obviously lots of Scots down here which helps! - the welcome I've had has been superb. Having lived in Glasgow, there's a lot of similarities between the cities; in Glasgow I lived in the west end and now here down in Headingley and everything's pretty much available within a few short miles so its pretty much like home!
APB: And why Leeds?
GB: I was looking at a few clubs, I came down and spoke to Phil, and was impressed by the facilities, the Kirkstall training site, the gym right on site and all the facilities they have, the meeting rooms etc, but also the ambition of the club and the fight it showed toward the end of last season; a few clubs would have fallen apart and got relegated and not won the Cup; they dug deep and worked for each other and that really excited me about this club.
APB: Its made a lot of people sit up and take notice!
GB: Definitely!
APB: You've had a fairly hectic old summer with the Lions, and that coincided with your announcement of retiring from internationals. How hard for you was that because I know you're very proud to play for Scotland?
GB: As you say it was a tough decision for me, but looking back on it it was the right decision. I gave a lot of service to Scotland and I enjoyed every minute of it but I didn't feel I could commit myself until the next World Cup and thats what Scotland needs. They need a period of stability, they need a new coach in, new management and a settled side leading up to the World Cup. It would be easy to play another year, take Gregor's cap record away from him and then glitz it a bit but that would only be for my benefit and not for Scotland as a whole.
APB: So will it be particularly difficult come November when Gavin and Gordon are off for the internationals? Or have you put it completely out of your mind now?
GB: No, there were other decisions as well - it allows me to spend more time with my wife, and there comes a time when you feel you've had your time. But now I'm happy I've given my all to Scotland as a player and now I'm looking to the future.
APB: LIke I say it wasa busy summer for you, and from the press reports you were one of the few Lions who came out with a lot of credit. If you believe the press reports, it sounds like the tour was fairly shambolic but I can't think that was really the case. What was it like looking from the inside out?
GB: From the players point of view we put a lot of hard rugby in. It wasn't chuck-about sevens style or anything but we fought hard and worked for each other and the mid-week side got a lot of good victories. I really enjoyed the tour and a lot of the lads did - we saw a lot of NZ, obviously results didn't go our way in the Saturday side, but we came up against what you have to admit was a very very good All Blacks side who had a lot of pressure on their shoulders and they came through and delivered. We'd never have chosen Lawrence (Dallaglio) and Brian (O'Driscoll) to be two guys injured and missing pretty much the whole test series, so from that point of view we didn't quite have the rub of the green, and we paid for it.
APB: In terms of the experience, though, was it a happy tour?
GB: Very happy, yeah! Just because you're not winning doesn't mean your not happy! Sure there's a lot of hard work, harsh words spoken after the game but you do or say these things not to get at people but to improve the performance of the side and to get results. Unfortunately we didn't quite have the personnel down there and New Zealand really peaked at a time when the Lions tour was there. They're going to have to hold that together for the next couple of years to keep that side for the next World Cup.
APB: So you think the Lions as a test playing concept has still got mileage?
GB: Oh, yeah huge mileage! Its disappointing obviously - the fact we didn't get results, but you look to tours previously and they're all very enjoyable and now very much financially viable; the fans wait and save their money five or six years for the next one. Maybe you could get the boys together in November and again a camp in March to get the spirit going, and to sort the calls out a bit earlier. BUt apart from that its certainly a thing I'd hate to see disbanded!
APB: Me too! Coming back to Leeds then, what's it been like training with these guys - what's the buzz been like?
GB: Its been great, a good atmosphere, a good spirit in the squad, everyones been working for each other, and working exceptionally hard especially last week which was a big training week for us; we've dropped the volume a bit this week but still the intensity has got to be up there. Certainly from my point of view its good here; you come into other squads where there's a lot of cliques with guys hanging around together and not talking to other players. But the spirit we've got in this squad is showing through and we've got to hold that together right the way through the tough times in the season and the good times as well.
APB: How well do you think Leeds can do this season?
GB: I think we've got a lot of potential. We've got that good atmosphere in the camp and just work for each other, and when the chances come along you've just got to take them and that'll be the proof of the pudding; when you're 17 - 18 down with 10 minutes to go, whether you can push for that penalty, push for that try. That's where the good sides, the market leaders in the last few years - Wasps, Leicester, Toulouse that's when they've gone on and won games.
APB: Having one of the best hookers in the world helps the Leeds cause of course!
GB: (laughs) Yeah, definitely!
APB: So, we're on to the Smash Hits questions, and the first one is: If you could relive one sporting moment in your life, what would it be?
GB: We won in Paris 36-22 or something like that in 1999 to win the last Five Nations championship. definitely that!
APB: Always a good thing! How about reliving a non-sporting moment?
GB: (pauses) Non sporting moment...
APB: ... Or has you life been totally dominated by sport?!...
GB: (chuckles) No, I think meeting my wife, marrying my wife, our first house, all those kind of things that stay with you. One of those!
APB: Your favourite food?
GB: Depends what I'm allowed from the nutritionalist - its not much these days! In season - Sushi I think, and lets go for Chicken Wings and Blue Cheese Sauce off season!
APB: Wow! There's a bit of a difference there! How about drink? Again, in season and off season.
GB: Lets go for raspberry and water which is a New Zealand drink ; the nearest equivalent here would be blackcurrant and water so we'll go with that. Out of season, a nice single malt!
APB: Film?
GB: Ermmm... Usual Suspects
APB: Book?
GB: Harry Potter.
APB: Oh yes? Which one?
GB: The latest one is quite good actually, I quite enjoyed that.
APB: You do know they're aimed at ten year olds?
GB: (laughs) Yeah. Have YOU read them?
APB: Oh yes I've read them all!!! What advice would you give a 13 year old Gordon Bulloch, knowing what you know now?
GB: Just enjoy yourself whatever you do.
APB: Nickname?
GB: GB!
APB: And finally, your favourite way to relax?
GB: White boarding in Loch Lomand. I've got a ski-boat and white boarding is a bit like snow boarding except you're on the water getting pulled behind the boat. So on a summer night with the sun setting...fantastic!