1
Watson injury opens door for uncapped 23-year-old sensation
There have been calls for Gloucester winger Ollie Thorley to start against Scotland this weekend after Eddie Jones cut his squad to 25 on Wednesday evening.
ADVERTISEMENT
Anthony Watson will miss the Calcutta Cup game having already missed the opener in France last Sunday through injury.
He was expected to retake his starting berth in Jones’ side in place for newly capped George Furbank, either starting at full-back or on the wing with Elliot Daly taking the 15 shirt.
However, with Watson now ruled out, there is a campaign for Thorley to earn his first cap for England after the 23-year-old lit up the Gallagher Premiership with mazy runs covering the length and breadth of the pitch.
It was a tough debut for Furbank in Paris, although it was a Test match where many England players struggled with the conditions and the ferocity of the French team.
Take the pressure off Furbank and put him on the bench. Start Thorley at wing and plug Daly in at fullback. Give Furbank 20mins at the end, with Daly shifting to wing for him.
— Rob Turnbull (@RobDTurnbull) February 5, 2020
Daly back at fullback and thorley on the wing
— Andrewking (@Andrew1985king) February 5, 2020
Daly to fullback, Thorely on the wing.
— Charles Spence (@ChazSpence1) February 5, 2020
Give Daly a chance at FB, and give Thorley a go on the wing. https://t.co/C2Ltix2u0l
— Matt Hardy (@MattHardyJourno) February 5, 2020
Thorley must start this weekend. a genuinely hard carrying runner would cause Scotland real issues
— Mystery Selector 4 (@4Selector) February 5, 2020
The Northampton full-back was deserving of his first cap given his form, but the same applies for Thorley. Daly could easily slot into the full-back role to give Thorley the opportunity to show what he is capable of at Murrayfield.
ADVERTISEMENT
Furthermore, the winger offers more physicality than his positional rivals, which is what England missed in France and may miss in the backline against Scotland with Manu Tuilagi injured.
Jones narrows down the options for Edinburghhttps://t.co/0c4DQt2KP7
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 5, 2020
With the Leicester Tigers centre out, one of last week’s replacements, Ollie Devoto or Jonathan Joseph, is likely to start against Scotland, which would allow Furbank to move to the bench.
Jones may be reluctant to make wholesale changes in the wake of the France loss, but Thorley is a player that has been unlucky not to be capped over the past year and could provide England with something they missed last week.
ADVERTISEMENT
WATCH: The Rugby Pod reflects on England’s loss in Paris and looks ahead to the Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland
Comments on RugbyPass
“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
3 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.
2 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…??? 🤑🤑🤑
3 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
3 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)
3 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?
2 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.
4 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 commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to comments