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'Game has changed for them': What Leicester now demand from props
Leicester boss Steve Borthwick has lauded the long-term potential of England hopeful Joe Heyes, the 22-year-old tighthead who earned his first two Test level caps in last summer’s series versus the USA and Canada. The Tigers boss still views the prop as a player for the future – the nine appearances so far by the front-rower in this season’s Gallager Premiership have all been as a sub, the role he will again occupy this Sunday when the league leaders visit Wasps.
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That said, the trip to Coventry should herald the 86th appearance for Heyes in the Leicester colours – quite a number given his young age – and Borthwick has highlighted how the contribution of the front-rower is an ideal example in showcasing how much the demands of the sport have changed for props in recent times.
“The thing with Joe is you can almost forget how young he is because he has been around a good number of years and has a lot of games for Leicester Tigers behind him already,” outlined Borthwick ahead of his team’s latest assignment in a season where they have so far won all 15 matches in the Premiership, Champions Cup and Premiership Cup.
“He has got a background in other sports, a big football background. Physically he is a big man but he moves really well. People will talk about early specialisation versus late specialisation – he has played other sports and has taken the physical attributes and skills from that and it has been a great foundation to play rugby.
“In that (tighthead) position you are continually learning and until the very last scrum you have ever, you will get better and learn more about scrummaging. That is very much a numbers game: how many times can you pack, how many scrums can you do? What we are trying to do is accelerate that. I see him as being a really good player now but the exciting part now with that background he has, with the age he has, he is going to keep getting better and I see his future as being really exciting.
The 28-year-old is one of the reasons why Leicester have won all 15 matches they have played so far this season? #Leicester #England #GallagherPrem #WASvLEIhttps://t.co/45WCqpqhzq
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 7, 2022
“Nowadays if you look at the way this game has changed, props used to just scrum and maul and now you are asking them to make 15, 16 tackles a game, you are asking them to carry and you saw a couple of his carries when he came last weekend in horrendous conditions (against Newcastle), you saw the power he has.
“You are asking him to move and hit. It used to be just you made a tackle and landed on the person and stayed there. Now they are hitting, rolling away, bouncing to their feet and getting back into another one. The game has changed for them and with what he has in his background, the attributes he has, he has the great potential to do really well in where the game is going.”
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Having finished his assessment of Heyes, Leicester boss Borthwick further elaborated on his perspective of how the sport has changed by including the latest demands now made of modern-day second rows. “The tight forwards now are incredible,” he added. “I have just talked about the props, but the second rows in the loose have got to defend like back row forwards, have got to move like back row forwards, carry like back row forwards and then go back to being in the set-piece, big, strong, tough – and props the same.
“They are doing the scrums and mauls… and then they are running and now they are being asked as well to make 15 or 16 tackles, make a good number of carries, to hit 20 breakdowns, to get in a load of kick chases. Where it just used to be you would sit in the middle now they are running. That is different nowadays for a tight five forward.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Did footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“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
4 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.
9 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…??? 🤑🤑🤑
34 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
34 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)
4 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?
5 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.
6 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 comments