What does Christian Wade have to do to get another England call-up?
The only answer, writes Lee Calvert, may be to put on 10kg and grow 20cm taller.
Wasps secured their place atop the Aviva Premiership table last weekend with a comprehensive victory over Saracens. Among the tryscorers for Wasps was winger Christian Wade, who took his tally for the season to 17. That number is impressive enough before we even consider that his nearest rival, Exeter’s James Short, has only scored eleven.
Christian Wade’s season numbers are something to behold. He’s at the top – or next to it – on all the attacking measures you would wish to apply to a winger: 17 tries (including six in one game vs Worcester in April), 36 clean breaks, 79 defenders beaten. His overall career tries total is not too shabby either, with 69 in 101 starts since his debut in 2011. Considering he’s still only 25 years old, there are many more to come, injury permitting.
Statistics can tell you some things, of course, but not everything. Many stats make a player look good, but when you actually watch them play, something is simply not right. Wade is not one of those players. When you see him in full flight the fact he tops so many attacking measures makes perfect sense. He manufactures tries from nothing, runs lovely support lines and has that unique ability that only a few have to make defenders look completely rubbish. He’s the type of player who makes you love watching rugby just that little bit more.
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Wade has played only one game for England, against Argentina on the summer tour in 2013. He was capped at a relatively tender age, under Stuart Lancaster’s new broom, then both he and his club had something of a dip and he drifted from international reckoning. He has not troubled the England squad since, even during this truly outstanding season.
With another Argentina tour coming up, this time with every first-choice England winger unavailable due to Lions commitments, Eddie Jones has overlooked Wade in favour of Joe Cokanasiga, the young U20 giant from London Irish, a team who played this season in the second tier of English rugby. There’s also Nathan Earle, a promising young winger/fullback from Saracens, impressive rugby league (and nationality) convert Denny Solomona, and Jonny May, the inexplicable Gloucester shambles.
Just what is it about Christian Wade that Jones doesn’t fancy?
The vital statistics we haven’t considered yet could be a key to this. Wade is 1.73 metres tall and weighs under 90 kilos – this puts him in the “small for modern rugby” bracket. In comparison, Earle is 1.86m and 100kg, Solomona is 1.90m and 95kg, similar to May, while Cokanasiga is basically a freakish monster at 1.92m and 112kg. What is clear is that Jones, like many modern coaches, wants his wingers big and has taken the view that for Wade to be an international success he would have to fall into the “exception that proves the rule” category of successful smaller players that contains the likes of Jason Robinson and Shane Williams.
The sad thing for Wade and the game of rugby is that it looks increasingly that players like him will not be given the chance. In truth it has been tricky for smaller players for some time.
Jason Robinson’s exceptional talent was deliberately sought out by Clive Woodward for England, but Shane Williams had his incredible international career almost by accident. Steve Hansen had his hand forced to take the diminutive maestro as a third scrum-half to the 2003 Rugby World Cup and then injuries meant he started on the wing for the game vs England. The rest is history.
Imagine international rugby for the past 15 years without Shane Williams – all the gasps not uttered, all the runs and steps not enjoyed by the fans, all the wins Wales would not have had… Had it been up to the head coaches this would likely have been the case. Without playing Shane at the highest level, his ability to excel could not have been tested.
This is what Jones is consigning Christian Wade and all England fans to, a career of “what if?” This England fan – and a number of others – doesn’t really fancy that scenario. Both for Wade’s sake, and that of the game we love, he should be given the chance just as Shane Williams was. He may always flop, but then again, he may also give us the best part of a decade worth of reasons to keep watching.
Comments on RugbyPass
Pick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
15 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
15 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
15 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
15 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
15 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
15 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
15 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to comments