Unsung Horo starting to have a ball on field after injury-plagued seasons
CHRIS BARRETT
July 23, 2010
JUSTIN HORO'S first foray onto a first-grade field, as a 10-year-old, was one he made reluctantly. The rookie Parramatta forward was, in the formative days of the Auckland Warriors, their ball boy, with his father Mark insisting he lead the side out on to Mt Smart Stadium.
''He used to get me to run them out, but I used to hate it,'' Horo said. ''I just didn't like it all. I just wasn't a confident kid
Now I look back on it, it's something I cherish.''
Horo does not need any pressing from the old man to run onto an NRL paddock these days. After two seasons spoiled by off-season injuries the 23-year-old has made the grade at the Eels, becoming a weapon of choice for coach Daniel Anderson off the bench this year.
As the son of Mark, the former New Zealand international and an Eels forward himself between 1990 and 1994, Horo's elevation has made him just the latest second-generation footballer in Anderson's side, joining famous surnames Mortimer, Reddy and Grothe.
Horo was expecting to again face limited opportunities this year but after high-profile recruit Shane Shackleton suffered a season-ending injury, his chance arrived. He has made the most of it, appearing in all but two of the Eels' matches to date in 2010.
''It's been tough these last couple of years, doing my apprenticeship in the lower grades,'' he said. ''I've been in the full-time squad for about three years but
my first pre-season I tore ligaments in my knee and the second one, last year, I fractured my foot.''
Horo's upbringing has taken him back and forth across the Tasman Sea. Parents Mark and Milly moved to Sydney when he was three as his father joined the Eels, but a few years later shifted to Auckland as Mark linked with the Warriors for their foundation year in 1995. When Horo was 12 the family was back in Sydney as Horo snr, now running the sports program at The Hills Sports High School, chased post-career coaching opportunities.
Despite an upbringing split between two countries there is no question where Horo's allegiance lies. He is a New Zealander ''through and through'', he says. ''I've got the Aussie accent but everything else about me is Kiwi,'' he said. ''The main goal is to one day hopefully play for the Kiwis.''
While that dream might not be too far away from eventuating, there have been times in his development when it seemed the only black-and-white jumper he would get his hands on was one from his Dad's collection.
Horo played his junior football at the Sydney Roosters but struggled to make an impact in their under-20s. He was then given a shot by Parramatta, with Mark's connections playing a helping hand. Since then his gradual emergence has been entirely of his own making, but talk to Horo for a while and one can't help notice the influence of his father in his fledgling career.
''Dad spoke to 'Rocket' [former assistant coach Rod Reddy] and [then recruitment manager] Grant Jones and they got me on board as a part-timer and I've just slowly worked my way up,'' Horo said. ''Dad was kind of your no-nonsense, Alan Tongue-type of player; 40 tackles a game and do all the tough stuff up front. I tend to have a bit more flair and try and get out on the edge and throw the ball round a bit more than he did. But I try and take some traits that he had and put them in my game.''
Mark Horo can be found in the grandstand at most Eels games these days, much like those other household names.
''I think it's really neat for the club to have those sort of cultures there,'' Horo snr said. ''It's nice to know that we played but we're like any other father. You're just proud of your kids.''
