Brad Barritt: Maro Itoje can lead England for years to come

Brad Barritt has full confidence that Maro Itoje is the right pick as captain for England, and potentially the British & Irish Lions.

Even though their England careers never quite overlapped – Barritt won the last of his 26 caps at Rugby World Cup 2015 and Itoje debuted the following year – the pair played together for several years at Saracens.

Barritt, a three-time Champions Cup winner, saw Itoje grow into a leader and always had the feeling that it was only a matter of time before he was given the ultimate honour of captaining his country.

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“I don’t think it was ever a case of if, it was probably when. He has always had fantastic leadership potential. and it is probably the perfect time in his career,” Barritt said.

“He is starting to evolve, he has always had great attributes but now he is ready to be all-encompassing and focus on the task at hand.

“Maro will be a fantastic leader for England and Saracens, today, and many years ahead.

“I think the best leaders lead by example, and Maro leads by his actions and is diligent in how he goes about his work.

“Then, when the big moments come, he stands up and stands tall.

“He is a super-intelligent guy, a great guy and well-liked amongst the team but also hugely respected.”

Itoje, 30, has succeeded Saracens team-mate Jamie George as England captain and Barritt is in no doubt that the dethroned hooker will offer his unswerving support.

“Jamie, I think he has probably been a fantastic mentor and supporting arm and he’ll continue that role I guess in both a Saracens and England capacity, because in any rugby team it is never reliant on one person, there is always a core of leaders that help any team be successful,” he pointed out.

“Maro knows he must do it his way. No two leaders are the same and I think you have to learn from leaders around you but then put your own stamp on how you intend to do it.

“He will keep a close group amongst them and have a few voices speaking in that huddle, but I think Maro is most impactful when he is by leading from the front and leading by example in everything he does, to disrupt the game and influence the game.”

Captaining his club and country and then the British and Irish Lions in one season would be some achievement but Barritt believes Itoje is firmly in the running to wear the armband in Australia this summer.

“With Lions selection, I guess, it always consists of that person being a guaranteed selection in the team and I think Maro is one of the very few who could be pencilling his name into that squad.

“I think the Six Nation acts as a great showcase for those prospective Lions leaders.

“If England have a very successful campaign and Maro is at the forefront of leading the charge, it does give you great momentum to be that leader.

“Andy Farrell will be well aware that dictating and deciding on a leader now is irrelevant, let’s see what happens in the Six Nations. Maro is poised to be that person.”

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Barritt was talking to RugbyPass, on behalf of Premier Sports, from his home in Cape Town before travelling to England to work on the channel’s coverage of the crucial Saracens v Castres Investec Champions Cup match at the StoineX Stadium.

The winners of the Pool 3 clash will be guaranteed a spot in the Round of 16 and, most likely, a home tie.

The importance of playing at the StoneX is not lost on Barritt considering all eight Round of 16 ties were won by the home side last season, except for the Stormers’ one-point loss against La Rochelle.

“It’s huge, especially in the context that South African teams are involved and there is even further travel,” he agreed.

“I was at that Stormers v La Rochelle game and it was a last-minute robbery. How the Stormers lost it from that position will still haunt them.

“It shows you need to play yourself into position to give yourselves the best opportunity to proceed in the coming rounds.

“Saracens have had a fantastic record at the StoneX. Teams typically struggle there, and we’ve got a good home record against French teams.

“It’s usually quite windy and the wind makes a huge difference in terms of how you play between the first and second halves.

“Saracens have had the rub of the green there so it would be a huge upset to expect Castres to go there and win. But these things happen.”

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Only two points separate the top four teams in Pool 3, with Northampton top on 11, Munster and Saracens have 10 points apiece and Castres are a point further back.

A mid-table Top 14 team at present, Castres turned on the style in round 3 of the Champions Cup, destroying the Bulls 49-10 at Stade Pierre-Fabre.

However, Barritt believes that the way they play may play into Saracens’ hands this Sunday.

“Castres, for me, were one of the most impressive teams of the last round with a fantastic performance against the Bulls,” he said.

“I thought they played a lovely, enterprising game. I thought there was great interplay between forwards and backs.

“I was highly compressed by their half-backs and the speed with which they moved the ball around the pitch. I guess that may play directly into Saracens’ hands, as they’ve gone to a really offensive defence which may force a lot of errors.

“It’s so dangerous that they are coming with a lot to play for because if they had qualified already you could have expected something different. It makes for a mouthwatering contest.”

Brad Barritt will join the Premier Sports team bringing every game live from the Investec Champions Cup this weekend as play-off places are decided. Brad joins Claire Thomas, Topsy Ojo, Chris Robshaw, Tom Shanklin and Martin Gillingham on Sunday at StoneX stadium for Saracens v Castres with live coverage from 3pm on Premier Sports 1.