Young English props moving to hooker are all the rage and in Seb Adeniran-Olule, Harlequins hope they have unearthed yet another.
The 18-year-old has been a key fixture of England U16 and U17 sides and has made the transition to the U18s with one fundamental change.
Twelve months ago he made the switch to hooker, following in the footsteps of Exeter's Luke Cowan-Dickie, who helped England U20s to their first Junior World Championship last summer, not to mention the Chiefs to the LV= Cup last weekend.
And while Adeniran-Olule admits he is happy anywhere in the front row, he believes he's taken the move in his stride.
“I definitely enjoy the physical part of the game. I recently moved to hooker and I'm loving it,” he said. “That transition was quite hard, initially, especially with me getting used to the lineouts.
“I started as a prop and played that position all my life until last year, when they switched me to a No.2.
“I love playing in the front row so don't mind where I play. I'd like to think I lead the line. I enjoy scrummaging and stuff and getting involved.”
While cutting his teeth at hooker for Harlequins, Adeniran-Olule is still turning out at prop for England U18s – no mean feat considering he has A-levels to fit around his busy schedule at Wellington School – the former stomping ground of England internationals James Haskell and Paul Doran Jones.
Adeniran-Olule has clearly received a well-rounded rugby education – prior to joining Wellington he went to Whitgift, where Danny Cipriani and Marland Yarde played.
But he admits that but for an early growth spurt, he may now be carving out a career as a goalkeeper.
“I started at 11 at secondary school, initially at Whitgift. I enjoyed playing in goal but looking back I'm not all that sure football was for me. I was really quite big for my age so I found that rugby was the way forward.
“It was quite easy to adapt because rugby was the main sport at school. So during break we spent our time passing the ball.
“I'm in my last year of A-levels and balancing that with training at Quins can be quite hard. You obviously have to manage your time. But it's not too much of a problem because I don't really see rugby as a chore.
“To get away from work and play rugby is pretty relaxing but I think I'm pretty dedicated and I do hope to turn professional.”
In his youth rugby was not on the radar until he got hooked when turning out for Sutton & Epsom and also becoming a fan of Harlequins who he has helped to the final of the U18s Premiership Cup.
“My friend's dad from school, a coach in Epsom called David Wiers, asked me if I wanted to come down.
“I was still a big football fan at the time and it took a bit of convincing but as soon as I started playing it was great. I didn't really know what rugby was until about 11 or 12.
“Then I started playing for a Sunday team called Sutton & Epson. I used to go there every Sunday. I've always supported Quins so it's great I'm representing them now. Yeah it's a dream come true.
“There's a lot of pride. I watch the first team on TV every week and want them to win.
“Playing for Quins gives me real pride and hopefully I can make the step up to the first team.”
