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Josh Strauss' Twickenham 2019 confession: 'I'd forgotten my boots, if I had told Gregor he would have blown a gasket'
Ask ex-Scotland back row Josh Strauss what his immediate memory is of the spectacular 2019 Twickenham comeback and his mind drifts to the awfully awkward moment that dawned on him shortly after Gregor Townsend’s team had just arrived at the ground for the Guinness Six Nations finale – much to his despair he had forgotten to bring his boots.
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“My first memory is rocking up to Twickenham and for the first time in my career I had forgotten my boots and it was this massive game,” Strauss told RugbyPass when reflecting on the incredible round five encounter in London where Scotland fell 31 points behind after just half an hour before jumping 38-31 ahead and then settling for a 38-all draw.
“If I had told Gregor he would have blown a gasket so I walked over to the 25th man who was Matt Fagerson. He now plays No8 quite often but he was one of the young guys at that stage and I asked if he could give me his boots. That was the first memory of that day.”
Strauss was a replacement that March Saturday two years ago and he couldn’t believe what unfolded in the opening stages. “We sat on the bench and it’s always a different experience because you’re not as focused from the warm-up because you know you have only got to be firing from the second half onwards.
“People outside of rugby think when a team gets pumped that they weren’t focused, but the team that started was focused. In the warm-up they were energetic and everything looked right. Then you looked from the bench and it was just a massacre for the first half. They [England] were just absolutely killing us and you sat there thinking, ‘Oh, what has gone wrong?’
'When he got named in the Scotland squad I played Flower of Scotland through the speakers when we having breakfast' ? #ENGvSCO #sixnations https://t.co/wi3N9wzUji
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 4, 2021
“You were ready in the warm-up, everything went well. We just sat there on the bench and went, ‘It’s going to be a long day, a very long day’. We walked in at half-time and words were said, people weren’t very happy etc.
“I just remember Finn Russell and us all getting together. They were like, ‘There is nothing we can do, we can’t go any lower than we are now so we have just go to pull together’. People expect this Hollywood speech but it wasn’t really, we just stood there and said we can only go up from here, that wasn’t us and we have just got to pull it together and make this game respectable basically.
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“Obviously we made it a bit more respectable luckily but again it’s not like you know this is going to happen, it’s just everything started clicking in that second half and everything was just going our way like it went England’s way in the first half.
“It was a roller coaster of a game to be part of. When I came on we had scored two or three tries and were back in it, then Sam Johnson scores from this crazy run (for the lead). I say roller coaster because of the euphoria of how well we came back and for them to score that last try was just absolute disappointment.”
* Michael Jackson’s ‘Billie Jean’ was top of the UK charts.
* Larry Holmes was WBC heavyweight champion.
* The average UK property price was £23,335.https://t.co/lKvSarwhsK— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 5, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Pretty good side. Scott Barrett should be the captain. Ethan Blackadder a great choice at blindside. He is going to go from strength to strength having made a couple of starts for the Crusaders. Scott Robertson rates him highly. Perenara could start a no 9.
3 Go to commentsI question and with respect. Was enough done over the last few years to bring through new blood knowing the Whitelocks and co couldn’t last forever. There should have been more done to future proof the team. New squad new coach, he and they weren’t set up well. IMO
6 Go to commentsJacobsen will definitely be in the 23
3 Go to commentsLots of discussion points, Ben, but two glaring follies IMO: 1. Blackadder at 6. Has done nothing so far this season to justify his selection. Did you see him going backwards in contact at the weekend? Simply has not got the physical presence at 6: we need a Scott Barrett or a Finau (or wildcard Ah Kuoi), beasts who are big enough to play lock, like Frizzell. If Barret played at 6, Paddy could be joined at lock by Vai’i or one of the young giants we need to promote, like Darry or Lord (if he ever gets on the field). Blackadder best left to join the queue for 7. 2. Not even a mention for Christie? Ratima gets caught at crucial times at the back of the ruck when he hesitates on the pass. The only way he starts would be if Christie and TJ are injured.
3 Go to commentsWhat a dagg in more ways than one
6 Go to commentsRegroup come back next year but sack some of the coaching team and don't be like the ABs last minute sacking. If Crusaders don't do well ABs don't do well.
5 Go to commentsProctor Definitely inform again this year had a hell of a season last year and this year is looking even better. Still mixed feelings about Ioane tho.
4 Go to commentsDagg is still trying to get enough headlines to make himself relevant enough to get a job. The Crusaders went back to square one at all levels. Shelve this season and nail the next one.
6 Go to commentsHe was in such great form. Sad for him but only a short term injury and it will be great to see him back for the finals.
1 Go to commentsAfter their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
5 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
3 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to comments