Preseason narratives are often dominated by new or returning players, as clubs trot out their recruits for feel-good stories before a boot has been laced. For the Waratahs this year, hulking lock Miles Amatosero dominated such chatter, with good reason, too.
But quietly chipping away in the background was another forward, Julian Heaven, whose path to NSW HQ at Daceyville had largely mirrored Amatosero but generated far less of the fanfare. Fast forward four months, however, and injury has suddenly thrust Heaven into the spotlight, where the 23-year-old looks right at home.
It has also put a rugby road less travelled into focus once more, underlining the fact that there is an early path outside Australia should youngsters seek it out when a professional opportunity perhaps doesn't land at their feet.
"I had the opportunity straight out of high school to do a three-month training experience in Lyon," Heaven told ESPN ahead of his side's crunch Anzac Round clash with the Chiefs in Sydney.
"I had a contact with someone who worked at the club and they sent my highlights over and I communicated a little bit; but they said they couldn't give me a contract and I wouldn't play, I'd just be training. So I said 'yep, perfect,' I just wanted to have an experience overseas and do something different for three months.
"I then came back and played a year of colts for Gordon, but then I got offered a year back at Lyon and I went back [to France] after colts, I had a good year and then I got offered a two-year contract with Lyon in their academy and I was fortunate enough to have a bit of training with the professional team. I made my pro debut when I was 19 with them and that's how it came about."
It wasn't all smooth sailing, however, as Heaven found himself overseas during the COVID pandemic, during which France, much like the rest of the world, ground to a complete halt.
But the young hooker did not opt for a return to Australia, instead committing himself to his contract with Lyon and finding a home away from home.
"I was pretty lucky at the time, I had a family who took me in during that [COVID] time. Their son was in my rugby team, so we'd train pretty much every day; I went for runs with the French mother; it was a great time," Heaven explained.
"But it was also tough not being able to train and play rugby, I spent a lot of time working on position-specific stuff, fitness and skills. It was a good time, but I remembered when it finished it was great to get back out there and start training as a team."
Heaven could not be more effusive in his adoration for the experience, one that very nearly led him down the path of a Test debut with international minnows, Spain, through some family heritage.
He eventually turned it down, knowing that could create an issue if he was to return to Australia and chase higher honours. But the value of fulltime training in France, where the facilities are often far more advanced down in Australia, was invaluable.
And he sees it as an avenue that may well see more Australian traffic in the future, the lure of JIFF [joueurs issus des filières de formation] qualification potentially too good to ignore.
"I think the attractive thing for young blokes like Miles and I was becoming JIFF-qualified and then obviously the experience of training full time and playing with world-class players from a young age," he told ESPN.
"There's things they can provide in France that perhaps weren't available when I was 18/19 years old, they paid for my university, so for me it was unreal. But I think it is something that you will potentially see in the future a bit more; there is a lot of young Australians out there that kind of get lost in the system a bit, so you'd hope that people are out there watching them and know what they're up to, hoping to get them back here at some point. It's definitely something that can happen in the future a bit more."
JIFF qualification essentially dictates that French clubs can have an extra couple of international spots in their squad, providing they have spent three years in a French Rugby Federation-approved training centre before turning 21. While Heaven fell just short of the required time -- a fact he disputes -- the situation would effectively allow interested Australians to complete a stint in France, return home, but then not be hamstrung by the Top 14's limit on foreign-born players should they wish to head back to Europe later in their careers.
Returning home, Heaven jumped from Gordon to Easts, playing 17 of 18 games in the 2023 Shute Shield season when he caught the eye of Waratahs coach Darren Coleman and former Beasties coach Pauliasi Taumoepeau. He was brought into NSW camp as cover for the team's trip to Auckland last season, before joining the squad fulltime for preseason.
He hasn't looked back since.
"I was spending a lot of time with different staff members and players, chewing their ears off to learn more about different set-pieces and defensive systems, so I spent a lot of time with [Dave] Porecki, he's taught me a lot along the way, so while he's injured he's still contributing which has been great," Heaven said.
"I spent a lot of time with Pauliasi trying to learn a lot about lineouts and ruck work, and Jason Gilmore has been great for me as well, I remember in preseason when I was a bit behind in understanding [defensive] systems, I was a bit behind the rest, I was putting in a lot of clips and spending time with Jason Gilmore and he just taught me so much. So those sorts of people are the ones I'm really grateful for having helped me."
With Porecki still to return from a troublesome Achilles injury and Mahe Vailanu injured against the Rebels last month, Heaven has suddenly gone from fringe squad member to the Waratahs' first-choice rake. His lineout work has been solid, so too his scrummaging, while NSW fans got an exhilarating glimpse at his ability in the loose when he scored a vital try in the Waratahs' dramatic victory over the Crusaders a fortnight ago.
"I didn't really expect it at the time, I was just following through the middle, doing my role and the ball popped into my hands," Heaven explained of the five-pointer. "I stepped the first guy and then I wanted to win the race into that space and then I saw the finish line, so I just wanted to get the ball over the line and put it down safely."
While Heaven is hopeful his longer-term future will be in Australia -- he has aspirations to play at the highest level -- he is immediately focused on helping the Waratahs in their pursuit of a finals berth. The next two weeks against the Chiefs and Hurricanes could prove critical in what is likely to be a mad scramble for the final couple of playoff positions.
He said the golden-point win over the Crusaders could prove the turning point in the Waratahs' season.
"Absolutely, we've been so close the last few weeks, we've been losing by small margins, and just a win like that over a really strong team just boosts morale and gives us a bit of momentum going into two really tough games against the Chiefs and Hurricanes," he said.
"And then for individuals as well, being able to unleash their skill and potential, it puts a bit of a hop in your step. It was good."