HE'S been involved in picking that many opponents' pockets, Oliver not Olver would be more of an apt name for the man who loves to get Doncaster out of jail.
Last-minute, match-winning kicks against Nottingham and London Scottish have seen Sam Olver cast in the role of the reluctant hero in recent weeks.
”It's one of those things you don't necessarily look forward to, those pressure kicks, but it's part and parcel of being a goalkicker. The more of them you have, the better you become at dealing with the pressure”, he told TRP.
”I've had a few of them over the years; I had one in an England versus Wales game in age-group rugby (U20s World Cup) in South Africa and I've had odd ones here and there.
”I missed one at the end of last season but as long as you get the percentages up and back yourself, you tend to get more success than misses. I'm around the 90 per cent mark this year, so I've gone into those kicks with a fair bit of confidence and trusting the process rather than worrying too much about the outcome.”
While hoping to avoid another nerve-shredder, the 25-year-old would take any win against Cornish Pirates at the Mennaye Field today.
”It's never an easy place to go and play, not necessarily one you look forward to, but it's got to be done”, he said. “This is the turning point of the season, we're only halfway through. That middle part of the table is quite congested, one result can massively change the dynamic of the table.
”We've won two of our last three games so we're going into it with confidence and looking to come away with four points.”
After leaving Northampton a few years ago, Olver, the cousin of Sale duo Tom and Ben Curry, has had spells at Worcester and Ealing. As he nears the end of the first year of his twoyear contract at Castle Park, Olver says the Knights experience has been good so far.
”It's the first place I've gone to and played a lot of rugby. As a 10 you need that consistent run of games to feel good about it. It's nice to come here and almost be in charge of a team and do things your way.”
Curtis Wilson has recovered from a hamstring strain and Guido Volpi gets his first start for the club.
Third-placed Pirates are keen to bounce back from last week's narrow defeat away to Coventry but will take nothing for granted despite a comfortable 44-25 win when the sides met at Castle Park in October.
Changes for the Pirates this week include a return on the wing for AJ Cant and there's a fresh pair of starting props in Hayden King and Jay Tyack. Josh Caulfield, who was unavailable last week because of Exeter commitments, is named in the backrow.
Coach Gavin Cattle said: “We were disappointed with the outcome at Coventry. The level of performance was not what we hoped for or expected.
”Doncaster have a big pack and are renowned for a strong set piece so we're going to have to nullify the threat and impose our tempo.”
TEAMS
PIRATES: Pirates: Moyle, O'Meara, Parata, Patterson, Cant, Rojas Alvarez, Schwarz; King, Channon, Tyack, Cutmore, Beukeboom (c), Caulfield, Kiri Kiri, McRae. Replacements: Frost, Andrew, Mitchell, Lemalu, Ryan, Davies, Tucker, Davey KNIGHTS: Hayes, Evans, Roberts, Foley, Wilson, Olver, Pocklington; Thomas, Holling, Foster, Eames, Smith (c), Lokotui, Conradie, Volpi Replacements: Edgson, Hislop, Suter, Britton, Sproston, Cullen, McColl, Cowell
