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England trial matches? Picking four XVs from the Premiership
There are few more compelling spectacles in either code of rugby than the State of Origin in Australia, something which Union has tapped somewhat into with the North vs South trial match that took place in New Zealand on Saturday.
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Although it wasn’t played at the same intensity as the notoriously fiery State of Origin, the All Blacks trial match displayed phenomenal levels of skill and has tickled the rugby world’s fancy at a time when the international rugby calendar has been decimated and the return of club rugby has been impacted by short turnarounds, heavy rotation and new law amendments.
The concept of a North vs South trial match in England would struggle due to the heavy concentration of professional clubs in the southern half of the country, though that doesn’t mean potential State of Origin-esque fixtures couldn’t work. Prior to professionalism, rugby in England had an established history of regional competition based around the designations of London & South-East, West Country, Midlands and North.
We have split the current pool of players in the Gallagher Premiership up into the respective regions that they came through at the junior academy level or, should they not have come through a Premiership junior academy, whichever Premiership club they first joined as a professional rugby player.
London & SE
15. Elliot Daly
14. Anthony Watson
13. Jonathan Joseph
12. Owen Farrell
11. Joe Cokanasiga
10. Marcus Smith
9. Ben Spencer
1. Joe Marler
2. Jamie George
3. Kyle Sinckler
4. Maro Itoje
5. George Kruis
6. Nick Isiekwe
7. Ben Earl
8. Billy Vunipola
There is an abundance of talent to pick from in this populous region that not only boasts three Premiership clubs – four if counting players from London Wasps before the move to Coventry – but also a wealth of high-level rugby-playing independent schools. Understandably, Saracens’ recent domestic and European dominance shows up in the composite side.
With the Berkshire pair of Jack and Tom Willis unable to crack the final XV, as well as talents such as Nathan Earle, Joe Marchant, Joe Launchbury and veteran full-backs Mike Brown and Alex Goode missing out, there is no lack of competition in the London & SE region.
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West Country
15. Jack Nowell
14. Jonny May
13. Henry Slade
12. Sam Hill
11. Ollie Thorley
10. Joe Simmonds
9. Dan Robson
1. Mako Vunipola
2. Luke Cowan-Dickie
3. Marcus Street
4. Jonny Hill
5. Charlie Ewels
6. Zach Mercer
7. Sam Underhill
8. Sam Simmonds
Another rugby stronghold, the west comprises Exeter Chiefs, Bristol Bears, Gloucester and Bath, with the four clubs enjoying rare dominance over football in their respective cities and surrounding areas. Like London & SE, the West Country does not lack for productive rugby nurseries and that is reflected in the amount of players in the country’s elite player pool that hail from the region.
Any XV that can leave out Ellis Genge has to be quite the group, whilst Jack Maunder is knocking repeatedly on the door behind Dan Robson. Emerging back rower Richard Capstick will push for his inclusion soon and Tom Dunn is hard done by as he has to compete with incumbent England deputy Luke Cowan-Dickie.
Inter-island rivalry was cranked up again for only the third time in 33 years with the #NorthvSouth match up in Wellington. Here’s how the South team rated.https://t.co/tigoiBk0sW
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 5, 2020
Midlands
15. George Furbank
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14. Ollie Sleightholme
13. Manu Tuilagi
12. Billy Twelvetrees
11. Alex Lewington
10. George Ford
9. Ben Youngs
1. Alex Waller
2. Alfie Barbeary
3. Dan Cole
4. Courtney Lawes
5. Alex Moon
6. Ted Hill
7. Will Evans
8. Lewis Ludlam
On paper, the Midlands squad should be competitive with the two previous regions, with players coming out of the professional academies at Worcester Warriors, Wasps, Northampton Saints and Leicester Tigers. That said, it is a heavy a mix of younger players with potential and experienced Premiership performers, without necessarily the international recognition that London & SE and the West Country both have.
Moon, Barbeary, Evans and Sleightholme embody the youth element to the XV, whilst few players have exhibited the durability and consistency in the Premiership that both Waller and Twelvetrees have. The squad leans heavily on Leicester academy products, though that could change in the coming years with a number of Northampton products beginning to knock on the door of club and country.
New Zealand and the rest of the rugby world wanted an exciting game of rugby, and the North and South Islands delivered it.https://t.co/oTGi3Q40DX
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 5, 2020
North
15. Simon Hammersley
14. Zach Kibirige
13. Sam James
12. Mark Atkinson
11. Josh Hodge
10. Toby Flood
9. Danny Care
1. Ross Harrison
2. Tommy Taylor
3. Kieran Brookes
4. James Gaskell
5. Josh Beaumont
6. Tom Curry
7. Ben Curry
8. Mark Wilson
With Leeds Tykes having fallen away and Newcastle Falcons facing their fair share of challenges in recent seasons, the North XV is understandably a little understrength in comparison to its three rivals. Sale Sharks’ contingent has also been impacted by Mike Haley and Will Addison both opting to represent Ireland in recent years.
Youngsters such as Tom Curtis and Will Haydon-Wood could push Flood out of the mix in the coming years, whilst Sale will be hoping that their South African influx doesn’t prevent their talented academy crops from taking the next step.
Outcome?
It’s hard to look beyond the London & SE side, who boast almost an entire XV of England capped players, with plenty of depth and competition that would make up an enviable set of replacements. Opting for Danny Cipriani at fly-half over Smith would ensure an all-capped XV, too.
The biggest challenge would likely come from the West Country, with the core of the squad making up the foundation of the successful Exeter side in recent seasons. If the tight five can hold up against the formidable London & SE group, the West Country would have every chance of pulling off an upset.
The Midlands group could give both London & SE and West Country a run for their money on their day, though they lack for the quality throughout the squad of their more southernly rivals. As for the North side, it does not lack individual talent, but to compete at the international level with the more stacked sides on offer elsewhere would be a challenge.
Comments on RugbyPass
Had hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
6 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
28 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
83 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
83 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
4 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
28 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
4 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
4 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
6 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
6 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
6 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
28 Go to comments