ACT Brumbies prop Blake Schoupp understands the importance of a strong 2025 if he is to achieve his long-term goal of owning the loosehead prop position in Canberra.
The 26-year-old is coming off an injury-impacted 2024 season that saw him limited to just seven appearances for the Brumbies.
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A shoulder injury was the root of Schoupp’s problems, picking it up during his first start of the year against the Highlanders in March.
Schoupp returned against the Hurricanes a month later, only to dislocate his shoulder. The prop and the club opted against surgery before a knock on the same joint against the Western Force two minutes into the game re-aggravated the injury a week before finals.
“Dislocating the shoulder the first time against the ‘Canes in that ANZAC afternoon game was pretty disappointing,” he explained to Rugby.com.au
“There was hope that I could rehab it and get back to full playing strength and I passed all the strength testing but it was just an unlucky way to start the game off. I think it was a good thing to start, but then that collision I think was just unlucky for the way the shoulder ended up and it was just a bit vulnerable in the position that I got hit in.
“It re-emphasized the fact that it was probably better to go under the knife but I don’t regret anything I did. I give it a crack and full credit to the rehab staff for getting me through.”
Schoupp is back to full fitness after an initial hiccup waiting for the bone graft to heal, leading to the six month recovery.
With Harry Vella (ACL) likely to miss the rest of the year, Schoupp is looking to put himself in prime position to take over James Slipper should the veteran prop call time at the end of the season.
Slipper is contracted until the end of 2025, with the 35-year-old yet to make a call on whether he’ll play on after the Lions tour.
“I'm not going to sit here and lie to you and say that's not my goal. That is my number one goal at the moment is to lock out that number one spot,” Schoupp admits.
“At the same time, I've got to respect the fact that someone like ‘Slips’ has been here for a while, and I've just got to take as much as I can from him because we just don't know when he's going to pull up or what he's going to do down the track.
“For me, it's just about focusing on doing my own job and if I get selected to start, then I'm trying to hold that spot and do the best for the team.
“It’s about looking at guys like ‘Slips’ and taking as much as I can from him before he decides what he does later on.”
The prop made good use of his teaching background during his injury layoff, giving back to the community.
Schoupp worked with Kingsford Smith School in Holt to mentor kids who were struggling at school, eventually recognised with RUPA’s Community Service Award.
“We just started a mentoring program for kids who were not necessarily thriving in the classroom so we just decided to take them out and with my teaching background, develop some programs to make the environment a little bit more enjoyable for them at school,” he added.
“We've got the boys to come in and help out and just run some programs with the boys one hour a day on the day off and it works really well. I've always loved it because it’s something else to do away from Rugby that kept us busy.
“…It's cool because you look at guys like John Ulugia who came through and he's now a scrum coach at the Brumbies. There’s a clear pathway there when you link the school and Rugby.
“It’s an exciting opportunity for me to look at down the track and it's just something that I'm passionate about so if you're doing something you're passionate about, then it feels a little bit easier.”
