Wait finally over for Wallabies' Speight

Rampaging winger Henry Speight wants to honour his Fijian family and Wallabies predecessors when he debuts for Australia against the Barbarians.

Henry Speight wants to honour those to have donned the green and gold before him when he finally ends his wait to become a Wallabies player this weekend.

But when the exciting 26-year-old winger steps on to the hallowed turf of Twickenham, thoughts of his family and native Fiji will also be prominent in his mind.

The exciting Brumbies star was on Wednesday named for his first Wallabies start in Saturday's clash with the Barbarians, after last month being declared eligible to represent his adopted homeland following a four-year wait.

"There's a lot of people that have gone before me in that jersey that have set a standard," the softly-spoken Speight said on Wednesday.

"It's a massive honour for me to go out and follow that this weekend."

Regarded by many as the form winger in Australia, Speight's rise comes as a huge boost to the Wallabies in the lead-up to next year's World Cup.

It also signals the end of one personal journey and the beginning of another that Speight hopes will yield positives on and off the field.

Speight's journey from growing up in Suva to becoming a professional rugby player has been eventful and littered with family heartbreak.

His mother Litia died from cancer when he was eight years old.

He and his siblings were sent to live with their grandfather, ex-Fijian president Ratu Josefa Iloilo, who passed away the week before his Brumbies debut in 2011.

Earlier this year, Speight also lost his 16-year-old cousin Malachi to brain cancer and the player is now passionately involved in charity work with the Fiji's Walk On Walk Strong Foundation.

"There are certain people who are not with me anymore but they will certainly be with me in spirit this weekend," Speight said.

"I just want to do them proud and live up to the expectation that they had."

Speight also hopes his ascension to the Wallabies will aid his goal of transforming the reputation of his family name in Fiji.

His uncle George is still in prison for leading the Fiji coup of 2000.

"Hearing the Speight name before was associated with the coup," he said.

"I want to change that so when the next generation coming through hears the Speight name it will be associated with a rugby player and not anything political."

On the field, Speight has a huge opportunity to push his claims for a Test debut against Wales next week.

The winger was tipped for a starting role during the Rugby Championship before an untimely hamstring injury extended his Wallabies wait.

Speight feared the injury could threaten his involvement on the European tour but any nerves about Michael Cheika's appointment were settled when the new coach approached him to break the ice before the John Eales Medal.

"He came up to me asking if it's my first tour ... and said 'mate, we're in the same boat so we can enjoy this together'," Speight said.

"To have some one you barely know being named your head coach and just come up to you like that, was something I really appreciated and the first few days here have been awesome.

"Regardless of how long it's taken, I'm just happy to be here and thankful for the opportunity that's presenting itself this weekend."


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