'Absolute animal at the minute': Henry Pollock on England No.8 rival

Henry Pollock has hailed Exeter Chiefs No.8 Greg Fisilau as an “absolute animal” ahead of their Gallagher PREM final showdown on Saturday, with the pair also competing for the England No.8 jersey.

Both No.8s were instrumental in their semi-final victories over the weekend, with Pollock registering 23 carries as Saints beat Leicester Tigers 45-31, and Fisilau producing a staggering 29 tackles, 15 carries and a try in Exeter’s 26-27 comeback win over Bath.

Both were named in Steve Borthwick’s Guinness Six Nations squad, and while a cap is yet to materialise for the 22-year-old Fisilau, Pollock was full of praise for his back-row counterpart when joining the For the Love of Rugby podcast recently.

“Being in camp with Greg, he is an absolute legend of a bloke and an amazing player,” the 21-year-old said. “He played so well when they won down there at Bath last week.

“I’m excited to go up against him. He’s an absolute animal at the minute and he’s playing out of his skin. I’m also excited to go up against him and also the other players in their team.

Fixture

Gallagher Premiership

Northampton

07:00

20 Jun 26

Exeter Chiefs

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“This is where you want to be. You want to be challenging yourself against the best players and this is one of those games where we are going to be up against some of the best players in this league. We’re very excited.”

Like Fisilau, Pollock is capable of playing across the back-row, and can even flirt with the backline.

When quizzed by Ben Youngs as to what position he prefers, the Saints superstar said he was open to any position, which will be music to Borthwick’s ears as he tries to build an armory of hybrid players.

He said: “I like getting my hands on the ball and, recently at Saints, that’s been at No.8. Getting into the game early is something I’ve been working on.

“I’m happy to play seven, eight or even on the wing if they need me to. I’m trying to learn lots of different things that can add to my game.”