Higher Calling
Men's Health Australia|July 2018

As Great A Rugby Player As David Pocock Is, The Game Has Never Been Enough To Satisfy Him. His Every Moment Is Shadowed By A Question: How Do You Cut Through The Trappings Of Success And Live In A Way That’s True To Your Values?

Daniel Williams
Higher Calling
YOU’VE BEEN HANGING around in a Canberra log yard with David Pocock. Now it’s time to go and suddenly the man has vanished. He was last seen headed out back, from where the barking of a vicious sounding dog is ringing out. The minutes tick by until, lo and behold, Pocock reappears, cool as a sax player. Turns out he’d been searching for the yard boss. He’d wanted to thank him for his hospitality.

“Deep down,” Pocock tells me later, “I think we all know what’s right.”

It’s the miniature version of a wider narrative. Pocock takes off. Pocock isn’t where others think he should be. But the man himself can shake off their annoyance or disapproval because he’s heeding his better instincts.

In case you missed it, Pocock checked out of Australian rugby last year. As good as he is, as important as he is to the fortunes of his Super Rugby franchise, the Brumbies, and to the Wallabies, he took a voluntary timeout from his duties to both. Instead of packing into scrums and winning turnover ball, he spent six months in his birth land of Zimbabwe, doing a bunch of things that simply wouldn’t for a second enter the head of 99.9 per cent of people. But that’s Pocock. That’s the example he sets. Be your own man. Dance to your own beat. Never mind what’s typical. Do what’s right.

Fortunately for Australian rugby, what felt right for this year was a return to the fold. Pocock’s back in headgear and primed for the Wallabies’ three-Test series against Six Nations champions Ireland this month. Football is his focus again. But it will never be his world.

TAKE STOCK OF YOUR LIFE

This story is from the July 2018 edition of Men's Health Australia.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the July 2018 edition of Men's Health Australia.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM MEN'S HEALTH AUSTRALIAView All
Good Guy, Bad Drinker
Men's Health Australia

Good Guy, Bad Drinker

When booze is involved, you might not be as charming as you think you are

time-read
6 mins  |
June 2020
How To Change Your Story
Men's Health Australia

How To Change Your Story

For a third of my life, I lived in an endless replay of the story of how I never measured up – a loop that kept me locked in a spiral of shame and meaningless hustling. Then I got the nudge to do some fact-checking

time-read
7 mins  |
June 2020
THE GOOD FIGHT
Men's Health Australia

THE GOOD FIGHT

When the going gets tough . . . the tough put others first. Here we salute some of the more selfless and courageous responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Why? Because hope and optimism are catchy. And in this time of crisis it’s worth remembering that the virus isn’t the only thing that spreads

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 2020
TAKE REMOTE CONTROL
Men's Health Australia

TAKE REMOTE CONTROL

Working from home using furniture that isn’t built-for-purpose could take a toll on your body. MH editor Scott Henderson went hunting for solutions

time-read
4 mins  |
June 2020
Morgan Mitchell
Men's Health Australia

Morgan Mitchell

The eye-catching star of the track has stopped running from a troubled past and is doing things her way. Get used to it

time-read
5 mins  |
June 2020
SNACK SIZED - WORKOUTS
Men's Health Australia

SNACK SIZED - WORKOUTS

Purpose-built for the busy man, micro workouts could make you stronger, fitter and more mobile. The best part? You can do them in self-isolation and integrate them into your working day

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 2020
ENTER THE BEAST
Men's Health Australia

ENTER THE BEAST

Big, fast and ultra high-performing, Mercedes’ latest offering could make a grown man cry

time-read
4 mins  |
June 2020
KUMAIL NANJIANI CAN DO ANYTHING
Men's Health Australia

KUMAIL NANJIANI CAN DO ANYTHING

TRANSFORM HIS WHOLE BODY. REIMAGINE A MARVEL HERO. REDEFINE THE ROLE OF LEADING MAN. AND (OF COURSE) MAKE US LAUGH

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 2020
HOW 25 YEARS OF THE GEORGE FOREMAN GRILL CHANGED HOW MEN COOK
Men's Health Australia

HOW 25 YEARS OF THE GEORGE FOREMAN GRILL CHANGED HOW MEN COOK

What happens when an ageing prizefighter, a quirky gadget and iconic ’90s marketing combine to take over the world?

time-read
8 mins  |
June 2020
BETTER MAN
Men's Health Australia

BETTER MAN

Pop superstar Robbie Williams got in fighting shape while beating his mental demons into submission. Here he reveals how he pulled off perhaps the biggest transformation of them all

time-read
10+ mins  |
June 2020