100 tries in 100 games - Sheffield's Christian Hooper on putting his best foot forward
.jpg "Christian Hooper going over for his milestone moments vs Fylde")
Christian Hooper going over for his milestone moments vs Fylde
©Colin Fisher
With the Six Nations returning this week, attention will once again be on rugby’s greatest championship.
England arrive with depth and confidence, France have welcomed back maestro Antoine Dupont, and the likes of Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Henry Arundell and Louis Rees-Zammit will spend the next six weeks testing the limits of space and speed.
Yet, beyond the bright lights, achievements are happening elsewhere. Moments that pass without fervent fanfare but hold their own significance.
While hookers Billy Harding (Blackheath, National One) and Ben Priddey (Camborne, National Two West) have amassed remarkable tallies of 34 and 29 tries respectively in just 18 games this season, Sheffield winger Christian Hooper crossed for his 21st try of the campaign last weekend.
But the 24-year-old’s finish during the first half of their 29-17 victory over Fylde wasn’t any old score. It was his 100th try on his 100th game for Sheffield, a new club record.
“Training was good in the week, but there were a bit of nerves on Saturday morning,” admits Hooper.
“I was really happy to get over the line, but more importantly to win and get the five points.”
Hooper’s memorable moment helped Sheffield to their 16th successive victory of the season, with Anthony Posa’s side sitting four points clear at the top of National Two North with a game in hand.
But before last weekend, Hooper’s 100th cap and his century of tries looked in doubt, with the elements threatening to waterlog the pitch at Abbeydale Park.
“I was getting a bit of chat for it [the 100th try],” Hoopers tells National League Rugby. “The lads were saying, ‘Imagine if you don’t score?!'
“The conditions weren’t favourable either! It was chucking it down in parts during the game, but glad to get it done, I guess!
"Massive testament to our ground staff at Abbeydale as well. They worked plenty of hours on Friday night and Saturday morning to get the game on.”
Hooper is now in his fifth season with Sheffield and even though he joined the Steel City outfit towards the end of their Regional 1 Midlands promotion-winning campaign of 2021/22, he almost instantly set the tone for his trajectory at the club.
The winger - who frequently wears the number 15 shirt due to the No.11 jersey being too big for him - scored six tries in his first six games.
“I don’t think I scored in my first game, though,” Hooper chuckles.
While he (correctly) puts the record straight on that particular statistic, you can’t argue with his try-scoring exploits since Sheffield's return to Level 4.
His numbers have increased year on year, culminating in Hooper being crowned National Two North’s top try-scorer with 25 last season.
His consistency has to be admired. Since being brought to the club by Posa - who was Hooper’s university rugby coach at Sheffield - the winger has missed just seven matches in the past four seasons.
“I honestly think it [his consistency] has been just getting used to the same system and also the environment we have at the club,” Hooper explains.
“I think well over half of our team has stayed throughout all four seasons since we came back into National League Rugby.
“It is just getting used to playing with everyone, you get more comfortable and you understand how to run off people.
"They understand your game as well so where you want to try and attack, they know where you’ll be, if that makes sense? The cohesion of the squad is a big factor in that consistency.
“I would say my diet and conditioning and stuff has got a lot better since Uni, so that probably helps as well!”
Hooper’s form last season earned him a well-deserved call-up to the Yorkshire set-up, but playing at the highest level was never his primary focus when he was younger.
That is despite spending some of his teenage years within the Saracens academy system while growing up in London.
“I played at home growing up and I was part of the Saracens academy, but then went down the Uni route,” says Hooper, who was part of the same academy cohort as winger Brandon Jackson and forward Toby Knight, who both have Gallagher Prem experience.
“I hadn’t really thought about where I could take my rugby when I went to Uni. I knew I wanted to play rugby at university, but I hadn’t really thought about pushing it any further.
“I just enjoyed playing and when Ant took over at the club [in 2021], it felt right to move to Sheffield and I’ve been here ever since!”
Standout moments in the blue and white hoops of Sheffield include a winning try in a 33-24 derby success over Sheffield Tigers in 2023, as well as two match-clinching scores in this season’s 41-25 victory away at promotion rivals Macclesfield.
That triumph in Cheshire was one of 16 wins Sheffield have accumulated so far this term.
Hooper and his teammates have also dropped just a single point all season, a return that reflects the steady progression of the club over recent years.
After finishing 10th in their first season back in National Two North, Sheffield have since registered consecutive club-record finishes.
They watched on as Yorkshire counterparts Rotherham Titans and Leeds Tykes fought out an absorbing title race in 2023/24, before finding themselves at the centre of the promotion picture last season.
Ultimately, Posa’s side finished second, eight points behind champions Leeds and it was a campaign that left Hooper with mixed emotions.
“There was a feeling of let’s build on what we had achieved, but there was disappointment because we didn’t feel like we put our best foot forward in the big games, particularly in the games against Leeds (Sheffield lost both encounters).
“We finished eight points behind them, so that tells you something. However, we feel like we have shown the best of us in the big games this season, so long may it continue.”
Cohesion within the Sheffield squad has also been a major factor in their progression.
The additions of former Rotherham captain Zak Poole - as well as prop Alex Reid last season - have further strengthened a group carefully built by Posa, who himself committed his future to the club by signing a three-year contract extension last summer.
“It is a lovely place to be at the moment,” Hooper admits. “We’re playing really nice rugby, and I am really enjoying things on and off the pitch. Everyone gets on really well, and that is a massive part of it for sure.”
Sheffield will look to maintain the feel-good factor around Abbeydale this weekend when they host bottom-of-the-table Scunthorpe.
The fixture forms part of a demanding run of 10 consecutive matches for the Steel City club, but between now and the end of March, they face just two sides currently in the top half of the division.
Hooper spoke previously about Sheffield 'putting their best foot forward in the big games', something they have done this season by beating all of their fellow top six sides away from home.
But even with promotion rivals Macclesfield visiting in two weeks’ time, the focus remains firmly on the task at hand.
“Every game in this league is a big game, so we can’t take anything lightly,” Hooper says. “We know how we were when we were at the lower end of the table when we came up.
“We were fighting for everything and look, we know Scunthorpe will be like that on Saturday, so it is just as important to prepare right and focus on this game as it is every other game we’ve got ahead.
“Some of the goals we set out, and we have always set out, are just to try and push ourselves, and I think we are doing that. I don’t think anyone imagined we’d be unbeaten at this point, but we would like to keep it going.”
Weekend Preview
After focusing on Sheffield, let’s look ahead to the rest of the action in National Two North on this ‘reserve weekend’.
As mentioned above, Sheffield’s closest challengers are second-placed Macclesfield, and they face a stiff test on Saturday when they travel to fourth-placed Hull Ionians.
Macc will arrive having recorded nine consecutive bonus-point victories, and they now hold an eight-point cushion over third-placed Tynedale, who visit 10th-placed Otley this weekend.
However, Hull Ionians have won six of their last seven matches and if they were to end Macclesfield’s flawless away record of seven straight wins, it could reshape the race for a top-two finish.
Friday night sees fifth-placed Darlington Mowden Park looking to arrest their slide when they face Wharfedale (7th).
DMP have won just one of their last six matches and are seeking a response following last week’s 42-27 defeat to Sheffield Tigers, while Wharfedale will hope to carry their strong home form onto the road.
Elsewhere, ninth-placed Billingham entertain Fylde (6th), with recent back-to-back wins easing any potential relegation concerns for Peter Evans and Dan Finney’s side.
Despite it being a ‘reserve weekend’, National One offers two notable fixtures.
In the relegation battle, ninth-placed Sedgley Park host Leeds Tykes (13th) in a big Friday night clash.
Both sides come into this contest on the back of wins, with Sedge having beaten Bishop’s Stortford and Leicester Lions in recent weeks to move six points clear of danger.
Leeds, meanwhile, are now just three points off the relegation play-off spot after a superb 34-19 victory at Clifton in Round 18.
As for Clifton, currently 12th, they face a daunting task away at promotion contenders Rotherham Titans (2nd).
The Lavender and Blacks are one point behind 11th-placed Dings Crusaders and remain firmly in the scrap for survival, but Rotherham are formidable at Clifton Lane, having lost just once in their last 35 home matches.
Significantly, Harvey Biljon’s side could move to the top of the table with a bonus-point win, and last week’s 36-26 success at Rosslyn Park underlined their title credentials.
Birmingham Moseley (10th) vs Rosslyn Park (5th) has once again been postponed.
And finally, in National Two West, attention centres on a crucial bottom-half clash between 12th-placed Exeter University and Redruth (11th).
Exeter sit two points above the bottom two and could close the gap to their hosts with victory at The Recreation Ground.
Redruth, meanwhile, will be eager to secure an important home win, aware that defeat could draw them into an unwanted relegation battle.
And at the other end of the table, third-placed Hinckley - winners of their last five home matches and three of their last four overall - host seventh-placed Taunton at Leicester Road.
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