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 It was never going to be enough, though, and after his first
session with the Rio-bound Australia squad on Wednesday, he joked
that had it gone on any longer, he would have been choosing a tree
on which to empty the contents of his stomach.
"Beautiful time of day, nice and warm, different to Japan, but look,
these boys are fit, fitter than I am, as you can see," the
28-year-old said between gasps on the side of the training pitch.
"I just did two full weeks of training in Sydney just so I could
come last here today..."
Cummins, the self-anointed "Honey badger" of Australian rugby, is as
well known for his look and creative use of local slang as he is for
his try-scoring feats.
The shaggy blond hair, porn star moustache and larrikin language
should not distract from a serious rugby talent that has earned him
six tries in 15 tests for his country.
 Not that his pedigree won him any deference from the other members
of the squad on Wednesday.
"I know when I was a younger rooster, you'd be a bit worried about
saying something to Matt Giteau or Drew Mitchell, you'd be bogging
yourself thinking you'd get a flogging," he said.
"But these blokes are legit, the young ones stand up and put you in
your place and that's what we need to have our best shot in Rio."
SHIFT MANAGER
Unlike the other Wallabies targeting Rio, Quade Cooper and Henry
Speight, Cummins is no stranger to the Australian sevens set-up and
played in the team that won silver at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
Cummins said he was confident he could quickly manage the shift from
the obsession with gainline advantage in the 15-man game to a more
opportunistic frame of mind.
"It all comes down to your fitness, but your mind's more creative
when you are not as bloody shagged," he grinned.
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"There is a potential Olympic spot there, what a year to do it, but
it's more about getting myself back 'Eye of the Tiger' like I was as
a youngster there, and being as good as I can be."
At the conclusion of the Japanese season, Cummins decided he needed
a break after four seasons of back-to-back rugby and visited
relatives in Norway and the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Between chopping wood in the Arctic north and fishing in the Timor
Sea, he found time to drop in on the inaugural Sydney Sevens last
month and enjoyed what he saw from the Australians.
"I was really impressed with youngsters having a go," Cummins said.
"The old fashioned just give it a crack, it doesn't matter how big
you are or how small, just up the guts and have a lash at them."
It is an attitude which Cummins has always brought to his own game
and will fuel his bid for selection for next month's Hong Kong
Sevens, the seventh stop on the 10-leg World Series.
"He looked alright, the Badge, didn't he?" Australia coach Andy
Friend said.
"With him he's a fighter. As he just said to the group, he's not
there yet... but on first-session viewing he's a good fit."
(Editing by John O'Brien)
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