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'He obviously looked at the fine print and went for the weirdest outfits'

By Liam Heagney
(Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images)

Harlequins skipper Stephan Lewies has explained he is revelling amid the rejuvenated team spirit that has materialised at the London club this year since head of rugby Paul Gustard left them in January, the lock especially hailing the influence that England prop Joe Marler has on the group.

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Instead of being available for England during the Guinness Six Nations, Harlequins front-rower Marler told Eddie Jones it would be best for his mental health if he didn’t take up the squad place that he has been selected for due to the bubble restrictions that would be in place during that campaign. 

This left the seasoned loosehead available to Harlequins for a rare spring run in the Premiership and not only has his form been exquisite in helping the club progress to this weekend’s league semi-final at Bristol, but the ability of Marler to bring joy to the group also hasn’t gone unnoticed – especially his glittering array of colourful matchday attire. 

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This diversity at the club is something new to Lewies, the 29-year-old who won his sole Springboks cap in 2014 and had played all his club rugby in South Africa until he arrived at Harlequins for a September 2019 Premiership Cup debut.  

“We have people from all over the world here,” he said when asked by RugbyPass to explain what he meant twelve-and-a-half weeks ago when his contract extension media release briefly suggested Harlequins was the most diverse bunch of players he had ever played with.   

“We have Argentinians, Fijians, English players, South Africans so it is quite a diverse group. Where I am from, it is mostly South Africans and if you have a foreigner it is one or two nationalities. So coming here was a lot different, different nationalities, different cultures from all over the world. It has been amazing and we have a few characters on our side. The likes of Joe and the energy they give the side it is just amazing. It adds so much to this team and what we are we about.”

Quizzed on what precisely were the best gags by Marler, Lewies continued: “The best ones I probably can’t tell you. I don’t know if you have seen his matchday outfits when we play at home? So earlier this season I just said it has to be Adidas kit so he obviously looked at the fine print and it didn’t say a Harlequins kit, so he went for the weirdest outfits he can find and he rocks up every matchday with that kit. So little things he does around the camp make such a big difference.”

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You would have got long odds five months on Harlequins emerging as Premiership semi-finalists. There were struggling for consistency and the sudden loss of Gustard could have been the final straw that plunged them further down the table. Instead, it became a rallying point and their fourth-place finish was certainly deserved.   

“January is quite a while ago,” said Lewies when asked to refer back to that time of the season. “If you know me I can’t remember exactly what happened then but we were at a crossroads 100 per cent back then so we didn’t listen too much to the outside world, if am I honest.

“We had a choice, either we are going to fight and do it the Quins way and enjoy ourselves and get the results or we were going to sink and we have shown the world what we are all about at Quins and when we enjoy ourselves what we are able to achieve.

“When our head coach left we were a man down in the coaching department so we came together as a senior group with the assistant coaches. There was a lot more input from the players and if you put something on the table you want to execute on the weekend, you had to take a lot more accountability for that because if it doesn’t work there wasn’t someone else to point fingers to, it was your responsibility and that extra responsibility for the players helped us in a sense.”

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Aside from the various Marler matchday kits, to the fore in the Harlequins revival has been the sumptuous front-foot form of half-backs Marcus Smith and Danny Care, whose attacking threat is invigorating for an abrasive forward such as Lewies who enjoys nothing better than sticking his head up after a breakdown and seeing the play has quickly moved further up the field.   

“It’s amazing. Ask any forward, going forward is much easier than running backwards, especially if you come off a maul and you have to run backwards. It’s a nightmare. Look, those two you mentioned are special players. Marcus has been nominated for player of the season and is golden boot so the talent just oozes out of that kid. I can’t wait to see what happens in the future with his career. It is really exciting. And then Danny Care has been there and done it all. He is not only helping Marcus but the rest of the forwards the way he directs us is amazing.”

The only nagging doubt about what Harlequins have to offer in the semi-finals is their recent form away from home – just one win in their six outings. Is that preying on their minds heading to Ashton Gate? “Not at all. This is a one-off game. There is no motivation needed. It’s a semi-final of the Premiership. The boys will be motivated and we’re going down there to do a job.”

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Jon 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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