'He is a movement. He's the new Taylor Swift of his generation'

David Flatman has described Henry Pollock as the “new Taylor Swift of his generation” after the Northampton Saints star ensured the hype surrounding him showed no sign of slowing on the opening weekend of the Gallagher PREM.

Flatman made the comparison after Saints’ 59-26 victory over Newcastle Red Bulls, a match which saw Pollock make his 50th appearance for the club just days after signing a new contract at Franklin’s Gardens.

The 21-year-old had already generated plenty of attention before a ball had been kicked, warming up in a scrum cap before removing it moments before kick-off to reveal a new set of cornrows. His recent link-up with promoter Eddie Hearn has also added another dimension to his rapidly growing profile.

While Tommy Freeman and James Pater grabbed the tries with hat-tricks in Northampton’s nine-try win, Pollock remained one of the major talking points afterwards, with Austin Healey suggesting the England back-rower could help take rugby to an entirely new audience.

Healey did, however, warn that Pollock must continue to back up the attention with his performances, particularly to retain the respect of more traditional supporters as the hysteria surrounding him continues to grow.

Fixture

Gallagher Premiership

Bristol

07:05

3 Oct 26

Northampton

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“He is a movement. He’s the new Taylor Swift of his generation,” Flatman explained on TNT Sports.

Discussing Pollock’s new agent, Healey continued: “Eddie Hearn is great at what he does, and he’s taking rugby, through Pollock, to new eyeballs, which is what we need.

“What he’s got to do, Pollock, is remember two things. Rugby is largely based on respect and the old guys that watch the game, that don’t like this new movement, releasing hairstyles on matchdays and pink-coloured boots.

“You can still ingratiate yourself to those guys by getting stuck in, week in, week out, which I think he does, and he does in spades.

“He’s got lots of respect for the game. Just because he’s of a new age, the social media age, he’s arguably the biggest social media English player that we’ve got.

“He’s going to get bigger and bigger, but he has to perform on the pitch, first and foremost.”