'An inspiration to so many being the lightest pro rugby player'
Pat Lam will allow himself a hearty chuckle when it is confirmed later on Thursday that Harry Randall has made the England matchday 23 and will feature in a Six Nations match for the first time this Saturday when Eddie Jones’ squad take on Scotland in the Guinness Six Nations opener. If size alone was the decisive factor in Test level selection, the 24-year-old would be a million miles away from getting recognised by the country.
After all, he stands at just 5ft 8ins and weighs a meagre 74kgs on a battlefield dominated by giants. England, though, know full well what they will be getting if and when Randall steps off the bench for Ben Youngs at some stage at Murrayfield in what will be his first cap in the Six Nations after two toe-dipping appearances during last July’s Summer Series.
“Tempo, energy, very good basics,” said Bristol boss Lam when asked what international rugby fans who haven’t seen Randall in action before can expect when Jones decides to throw him into the England fray in Murrayfield. “But tempo and speed would be the two things I would say.”
Randall will also bring a lot of ticker, defiance that left Gonzalo Quesada gobsmacked when Stade Francais lost to Bristol last month at Ashton Gate in the Heineken Champions Cup. “Gonzalo spoke to me after the game and he said he was in shock,” recounted Lam. “He goes, ‘Oh my gosh, Randall’. He said, ‘(Marcos) Kremer is one of the biggest boys from Argentina and Randall back-to-back stopped him on the line’. He couldn’t believe it and I said, ‘Yeah, he’s tough’.
“Harry has got great tackle technique but he has got a massive heart and he has been one of our big tacklers. There are so many examples, tackling forwards and driving them back. No worries at all. When I first saw him in my first Bristol game against Hartpury in the Championship I said, ‘Geez, that’s a small fella at nine’. He was phenomenal in that game and that was why I said straightaway, ‘Who is that player? I want that guy here’.
“Now working with him he is an inspiration to so many people being the lightest professional rugby player. He is only 74, 75 kilos, but that size doesn’t matter. It’s about the size of the heart but that is channelled into technique. He can tackle because he knows how to tackle. That is one side of it, the heart takes it to another level.”
Quickly tapping a penalty and taking off is another warming trait. “He reads the game so well. He knows when it’s on and when it’s not. A lot of our guys know and read Harry. He has got a really good feel for the game. It’s one of his strengths.”
What has especially helped Randall to raise his game for Six Nations inclusion with England after he missed the Autumn Nations Series because of a paddleboard injury is his fierce club competition with Andy Uren for the No9 Bristol jersey.
“If you look at selection over the last two, three years with Harry and Andy, you couldn’t really say who is the number one nine because one week Harry would start and the next one Andy would and their performances would push each other. It’s like international rugby and that is what you want to create – that ‘if I don’t play well the next guy will take my place’.
“If you get a place that you are comfortable that you are always going to play, it can lead to a tendency of being relaxed whereas what it has had actually done between Andy and Harry, they are such competitors. Even in these (extra) kicking sessions they have, they play for coffees and stuff. It is just absolute competition driving them, they are competitive guys and that has brought the best out of Harry, which means that you are naturally improving.
“I had never ever subbed a player off before half-time before and I took Andy off on about 33 minutes. He was having a shocker against Jersey and he sobbed for a couple of days, but it was the making of him. And then, I think it was last year, I ended up subbing Harry Randall at 38 minutes because he was having a shocker and he sulked for a couple of days as well.
“But they laugh (about it) and they compete, ‘at least I wasn’t 33 minutes or 39 minutes’. The two of them are the only two players I have done that to but the thing I loved about it is the way they bounced back from that, and it was also a little reminder to be on top of your game.
“The speed and tempo of the way I want them to play the game as nines has improved their fitness as well. It got to a point where if you go back and look at some of their earlier games, they were blowing hard after 50, 55 and now both of them can comfortably play 80 minutes and you look at their physiques, they have trimmed down.
“Particularly Andy, he has trimmed down and their repeated speed is so much better. I have had Andy five years, Harry four. They have got a really good relationship going and have really improved as rugby players.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments