By Barney Burnham
September 2 2005

Barney Burnham chats to Alex King as London Wasps' stand-off starts his tenth season as our King-pin. Kinga recounts his journey from south coast schooling to west London professionalism, via a certain west country, university city and Rosslyn Park.  

BB: Let’s begin with your early days. Family background - do you come from a sporting family?

AK: I wouldn’t say hugely sporting. My dad played a bit of rugby, and my brother played. My uncle was a good rugby player. He played for New Brighton - I think, and I’ll be generous here, in the sixties.

BB: I think they were quite a strong side in those days, weren’t they?

AK: He tells me so, and he has the scars to prove it - but he was a good player, and that’s probably where I get it from.

BB: Did you always have an aptitude for ball games? Were you one of those irritating people that every school seems to have, who was captain of everything?

AK: No, but I went to a pretty sporty school, though. We always had a strong rugby team and cricket was the other sport.

BB: That’s Brighton College.

AK: Yes - Brighton College and St. Christopher’s, in Hove. I loved ball games. I was terrible with wheels - things like skateboards and bikes - so I always stuck to the balls!

BB: What about the academic side of school? Was sport always the most important part of your school life, or were you also strong academically?

AK: I was all right - not a brain surgeon, but I got by! Sport was a good release, to keep the balance of the school year, really - but I did prefer games to lessons, particularly French!

BB: Will Green never tires of telling the story of coming up against you in a school cricket match. What’s your version of it?

AK: That was one of the first times I met Willy, who went to Eastbourne College. I came out to bat, I think we were 20 for 2, chasing about 200. There was this rather portly guy, standing at short leg. First ball,I hit for four straight over his head, and he gave me a few verbals. Next ball, he caught me and showed me where the pavilion was. He then became a Wasps team-mate for 10 years.

BB: And probably reminded you of that match every day.

AK: Absolutely!

BB: Then you went on to Bristol University, where there some more future Wasps team-mates.

AK: Yes, I was very lucky to be at university with the likes of Josh Lewsey, Mark Denney and Fraser Waters and to play in the same team as them. The four of us sort of grew up together, and then it just happened that we came to Wasps together, which has been fantastic.

BB: When you were there, were you already thinking in terms of a career in rugby, because the game was in its last amateur days then?

AK: Yes, it turned professional in 95/6. I’d just finished two years of my three year degree course. I’d been picked for England A and Wasps offered me a contract. So I had a big decision to make. Do I stay in Bristol and finish my degree, or do I turn pro and join Wasps? The idea was to join Wasps and finish my degree in London, but - for one reason or another - the rugby took precedence. I’ve been up here for ten years now, but I did manage to finish my degree in 2003, at Brunel - much to the delight of my parents!

BB: So now you can get a real job.

AK: Perhaps in a few years!

BB: Can you remember who your first game for Wasps was against?

AK: It was against Saracens at Loftus Road.

BB: Oh, yes. Our first game there - the one in which Lawrence tackled Michael Lynagh so hard that he was out of the game for a couple of months or so.

AK: Yes. It was amazing, really. You grow up watching rugby and you end up playing against one of your heroes at number 10. Undoubtedly one of the best fly-halves who’ve ever played the game. A dream start, really. I dropped a goal in the first few minutes and we went on to win the game, and then won the league that season. Very special memories.

BB: You’d already won the RFU Young Player of the Year award, before joining Wasps.

AK: That’s right - the previous year, when I was still at university and played a few games for England A. I was so excited to join Wasps. It was a fantastic time at the beginning of my career.

BB: You got called up in to the senior England squad that season and Jack Rowell controversially decided to remove you from the squad to play in Cardiff, and put Rob Andrew on the bench instead. How much did that hurt at the time, and does it still hurt, looking back on it?

AK: It does, but every career has high points and low points. That was definitely a low point, but I went on tour to Argentina that summer, and finally got my first cap.

BB: And scored a try with almost your first touch.

AK: Yes, I’ve never actually seen it. I’d love to dig up some footage of it. I think it was shown on Channel 5.

BB: Yes, it was, and their coverage left something to be desired. It was a delayed ‘as live’ transmission. They put their own clock on it, but the host broadcaster’s clock was also visible. Unfortunately, the footage had been edited, by the time it was shown, so the clocks were showing completely different times.

You then were picked in Clive Woodward’s first England team, to play Australia at Twickenham, but injury forced you to withdraw. Do you feel that you’ve been rather cursed by injury, when it comes to England?

AK: There’s always been a massive correlation between injuries and being involved in England squads, but that’s just the way it goes. I looked at the new board they’ve got at Twyford Avenue now, which shows all the things we’ve won over the last few years , and I know that I’ve been very lucky to have been fit for every final that we’ve played. I’ve had injuries, but they’ve always seemed to interfere with the England career, rather than Wasps. So I’ve been lucky on one side, but missed out on the other.

BB: Generally, whenever you’ve come up against fly halves who’ve won a lot more caps than you, you’ve outplayed them - particularly in the big games. Jonny Wilkinson came off second best in the 1999 Cup final.

AK: Yes, but I’ve always had a pretty good team around me. You can compare performances between two guys, but there are 14 others helping your cause. Yes, I played well that day, but it was a great team performance and it was crucial for us to get that first big cup win. We’d lost a few finals at Twickenham. We’ve won bigger tournaments since then, but that ’99 win really set us on the way. It’s all about on the day, and we’ve shown since then that on the day, when there’s the chance of silverware, we now take those chances, and that started an unbeaten run of 7 finals

BB: The previous year, we were hammered by Saracens, in Michael Lynagh’s last game. My memory of it is that it was almost the perfect display by a 10.

AK: It was. Unfortunately, I was on the receiving end of it. Sometimes, you just have to hold your hands up and acknowledge a fantastic performance by one of the best number 10s who‘s ever played. It was a huge learning day for all of us. We’d struggled in the league all season, the final was probably one game too far. They had Pienaar, Sella and Lynagh all, I think, playing their last games for the club, and we just got overturned by a better team. But we’ve bounced back hugely since then and I know whose record I‘d rather have.

BB: For a long time, people used to say that you couldn’t be picked for England, because you weren’t a front-line goal kicker. Was that something that irritated you? I remember you taking crucial kicks throughout your career. There was one which got us a draw against Bristol, in your first season.

AK: Yes, I can kick my goals. Unfortunately, the one time I did kick for England, in that pre-World Cup match at the Millennium Stadium, I missed a few.

BB: They were going over until you were put off by a Welsh streaker!

AK: I can’t remember if it was male or female.

BB: Male, I think. A friend of mine was sitting in that part of the ground, and she says the stewards weren’t exactly gentle with him!

AK: Good! I’ve enjoyed kicking for Wasps, but we’ve been lucky enough over the years to have some pretty good kickers - Giz now, Kenny (on his day), and obviously, Gareth Rees in the early stages of my career. But I think, if you look at my overall record for Wasps, it isn’t too bad.

BB: I think your strike rate is up around the 80% mark, which matches the best of them.

AK: Yes, I used to let Kenny take the long ones, while I did the shorter ones, and that probably helped!

BB: Looking back over the years, which have been the absolute highlights? There have been so many great occasions for Wasps - I imagine the Heineken Cup Final must be right up there.

AK: That is, without doubt, the number one. Just the whole sense of occasion, really - and the way we got there. There was the win down in Perpignan, to get us through. Then the quarterfinal against Gloucester, which was a sensational team performance. I remember Volls and Lawrence clashing heads and lying on the ground, and thinking "Oh no. Is the dream over? Are they both going to go off? We’re going to struggle." But they both staggered to their feet and I remember the Sky commentary, with Miles Harrison saying; "What are these guys made of?"

That sort of summed up our season, really. We then went to Dublin, for that fantastic win against Munster - arguably one of the greatest games anyone’s ever seen - then a tremendous final against Toulouse, who are real rugby magicians.

I remember at half-time, Shaun Edwards saying: "We’re playing a very worthy team here." At times in that first half, we were chasing shadows. But our defence held out, we took our chances and Rob, at the end, saved us from going into extra time. My legs were like jelly, by then!

BB: People always remember that moment, but another crucial moment came at the start of the second half, when you made a fantastic break that sent Gizzy in for a try.

AK: Yes, I found a burst of pace, which I’d been looking for all season. I went past Trevor Brennan, found some space, was getting tracked down and then Giz appeared on the inside. I gave him the ball, and he just had the legs to get there. A crucial time to score, just after half-time. We’d been under the cosh in that first half, but the guys dug it out. It was just sensational.

BB: And what about the lows?

AK: Obviously the injuries aren’t pleasant, particularly when I had to pull out of the World Cup training squad. Biarritz this year was a real low point. I had a poor game. I think you know the story. Before the game, I put some stuff on my hands, to grip the ball - on one of the driest days you’ll ever have - and when I had a simple penalty to the corner, I couldn’t drop the ball properly, and made a mess of the kick at a crucial time.

As champions, to go out like that was terrible. We thought we’d need four tries, but it turned out that just a win would have got us through. The biggest problem was losing twice to Leicester, but that day in Biarritz was a huge low point - but I remember talking to fans afterwards and telling them that we would bounce back and win the Premiership again. It’s amazing how, in four months, you can go from the depths of Biarritz back to the heights of lifting silverware at Twickenham again. It just shows what an incredible sport and an incredible club this is.

BB: How’s the body standing up to ten years of professional rugby? You might not want to hear the word, but you are a veteran.

AK: Yes, I was the only 30-year-old in our recent trip to Poland. It does creep up on you pretty quickly, but there are some fantastic young guys coming through. My body’s in good shape. Not going on tour this summer has really helped me rest and get into really good shape for the season, and I can’t wait for it all to get started against Saracens, on September the 3rd .

BB: How much longer do you think you have in you?

AK: I want to keep playing for as long as I can, because it will be a very weird thing not to be playing any more, at any level. I’ll keep on for as long as possible, and for as long as the club want me here , and as long as my body holds up.

BB: And after you stop playing, do you want to stay involved in some capacity?

AK: I want to keep my options open, really. I want to do my coaching badges and just make sure I have that opportunity. But I’m also going to look at other avenues, just to give myself other options, in case things don’t work out.

BB: Earlier, you mentioned Michael Lynagh as one of the best players you’d ever come up against. Who else has stood out?

AK: Joel Stransky, when he was at Leicester. A fantastic player. And I’ve really enjoyed the rivalry over the last few years with Jonny Wilkinson, Charlie Hodgson and Ollie Barkley. There are some really good 10s around the country now. It’s just fantastic for the English game that there are so many, when, a few years ago, there were only about two or three. It’s a great time to be involved in English rugby, and I hope we bounce back from the lean year we’ve had in the national team.

BB: People here at Wasps are getting quite excited about the potential of Daniel Cipriani. How highly do you rate him?

AK: He’s got undoubted talent. What’s important now is that he gets the right coaching and he puts the hard work in, himself, to fulfil that talent. Let’s be realistic, I’m not going to be around here in a few years’ time, and we have a great young 10 in the wings - along with the likes of James Brooks and Jeremy Staunton. It’s looking pretty healthy in the number 10 position at Wasps -as it is all over the park.

We‘ve made some great signings - I think Eoin Reddan is going to be a great number 9, and it’s great to see Stuart and Fraser back in action, giving Oogie, Josh and Rob Hoadley some competition in the centre.

BB: At the beginning of each season, you look at the ins and outs for each Premiership club, and it always seems as if Wasps have the shortest list, in both categories. Is that stability one of the key features in the successes of the past few years?

AK: Yes, you build teams by keeping players together. You build them by learning from the mistakes and the lows. You have to go through all that, to achieve success. If you’re drafting in large numbers of new players all the time, you can never build an identity, a culture and a philosophy of how you want to play.

Obviously, you have to bring people in because of injury and retirements and people moving on, but if the core’s still there, and you’ve got the guys who’ve played together a lot, there’s no guarantee, but you’re more likely to be successful.

BB: And what will be the dividing line between success and failure this season?

AK: You want to keep your squad fit and fresh. I think the hunger’s there, judging from the Poland trip and pre-season training, which has been fantastic - but it’s a very competitive league, and you have to be on your mettle every single week.

BB: It’s your benefit year, and you’ve been made President of the newly formed Supporters’ Club, so that’s another honour.

AK: Yes, it is an absolute honour. I’ve been here ten years now, and when I was told I was the President of the new club, I was absolutely thrilled, particularly bearing in mind the great players who are at the club now. I’m looking forward to meeting all the fans and really enjoying the year.

I want to make sure that my benefit year has events that the ordinary supporter can attend. I was at Will’s Curry Night last season, and I’ve already had talks with the Drunken Wasps about doing something similar. That was a great night and I hope we can come up with something just as good this season.

[Ed's footnote: If (or when!) Kinga's tenth season comes to triumphal climax, you know the score...Alex, Alex, Alex - King, King, King...!]