'He's looking big, strong and quick' - Devoto tipped for England call-up
It will be June 12 when we get a glimpse of how Eddie Jones is planning to fix the malaise that was the recent fifth-place Guinness Six Nations finish by England. With ten of his recent picks – plus the unwanted Sam Simmonds – away with the Lions this summer, he has plenty of scope to shape things up for the two-Test series featuring Twickenham matches against USA and Canada following an England A game versus Scotland A at Leicester.
International games during Lions summer are traditionally when the handbrake comes off and a wholesale raft of fresh-faced players get called into the mix. Take 2017. While the Lions were down in New Zealand battling to their Test series draw versus the All Blacks, Jones headed to Argentina for a two-Test series with an unfamiliar looking squad that contained a multitude of uncapped players.
At that time names such as Will Collier, Nick Schonert, Harry Williams, Don Armand, Nick Isiekwe, Ben Curry, Tom Curry, Sam Underhill, Mark Wilson, Jack Maunder, Piers Francis, Alex Lozowski, Sam James, Harry Mallinder, Joe Marchant, Joe Cokanasiga, Nathan Earle and Denny Solomona all had zero caps.
Some have gone on and thrived, Tom Curry making the 2021 Lions and Sam Underhill starting with him in the 2019 World Cup final. But most others have either remained on the fringes or fallen off the international radar. Those successes and failures are why Jones’ latest squad announcement will generate excitement – what newcomers can go on and make it and who will get a sniff and take fright at what is required to succeed at Test level.
Ollie Devoto was one of the inexperienced but capped England players Jones took along for the Argentine ride in 2017. He was 23 at the time, about to leave Bath for Exeter when he made a May 2016 debut in the Twickenham friendly versus Wales, coming off the bench to play the closing five minutes in place of George Ford.
The Exeter message after their four 2021 Lions picks linked up with Gatland and co for the first time in midweek https://t.co/Lm7SRPZ5Jr
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 27, 2021
Overlooked for selection in Argentina, he remained on the fringes until February 2020 when he bridged a five-year gap in between caps, coming off the bench again for Ford, this time in the Six Nations loss at France. Since then, though, Jones has looked elsewhere at other options such as Ollie Lawrence, but Devoto will surely have aspirations of seeing his name included next Wednesday for England given the calibre of his recent performances in the Exeter midfield as they seek to successfully defend their Gallagher Premiership title.
Exeter boss Rob Baxter has been pleased with what he has seen lately from his now 27-year-old inside centre. “Ollie is playing very well, he is looking very strong,” enthused the coach to RugbyPass when asked about the current form and England Test squad aspirations of Devoto, a player he has had under his wing for five seasons.
“He is looking big, strong, quick, taking the game into his own hands. He is wanting to be involved in the game and a lot of what we do does involve him. We are ticking along well as a team and we are sharing the workload pretty well which means our backs get on the ball a fair bit.
“Our forwards are well known for the way they handle in their play and we tend to move more based on them in the five-metre, 22-metre zone but on the whole, he is just getting large involvements in the game. He is talking very well. He is one of those guys who is maturing and developing and experiencing big games all the time and he doing it in the right way, he is making those experiences help him be a better player.
“I’m really pleased with his form and he is probably having one of his best seasons he has had for us. He might disagree. He might not feel he is on that but he is starting to really play like that and it would be great for him – he is certainly back on the international radar now and that is down to the quality of how he is playing.
“That [international selection] is the expectation, you have to have that expectation that it [the summer series] widens the group out a little bit and that we have got a number of guys that may well be looked at in the England squad.”
"He has been on a wretched run with injury and then guys have been playing well on the wing…" https://t.co/5BlRIe7dPI
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 27, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Sorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
1 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to commentsSimple reason for wanting him back. Robertson wants him as captain. Otherwise he wouldn’t be bothering chasing him. Not enough reason to come back just to mentor.
10 Go to commentsI had not considered this topic like this at all, brilliant read. I had been looking at his record at the Waratahs and thought it odd the Crusaders appointed him, then couple that with all that experience and talent departing and boom. They’ve got some great talent developing though, and in all honesty I don’t think anyone would be over confident taking them on in a playoff match, no matter how poor the first half of their season was. I think they can pull a game out of their ass when it counts.
2 Go to commentsNot a bad list but not Porecki and not Donaldson. Not because they are Tahs, or Ex Tahs, they are just not good enough. Edmed should be ahead. Far more potential. Wilson should be 8 and Valentini 6. Wilson needs to be told by his father and his coach, stop bloody running in to brick wall defence. You’re not playing under the genius Thorn any more. He’s a fantastic angle runner. The young new 8 from the Brumbies looks really good too. The Lonegrans are just too small for international rugby as is Paisami, as is Hamish Stewart at 12. Both great at Super Rugby level. Stewart could have been a great 10 if not for Brad Thorn. Uru should be there and so should Tupou. Tupou just needs good Australian coaching which he hasn’t been getting. I don’t think Schmidt will excite him.
2 Go to commentsIf he wants to come back then he should. He will be a major asset to the younger locks and could easily be played as an impact player off the bench coming on in the last 30. He is fit, strong and capable and has all the experience to make up for any loss in physical prowess. He could also be brought back with a view to coaching within the structures one day. Duane Vermeulen played until he was 37 or 38. He is now a roaming coach within the South African coaching structures. He was valuable in the last world cup and has been a major influence on Jasper Wiese and other young players which has helped and accelerated their development and growth. Whitelock could do the exact same thing for NZ
10 Go to commentsBrett Excellent words… finally someone (other than DC) has noted that Hanigan is very hard and very good at doing what Backrow should do… his performance via the Drua sauna was quite daunting for those on the other side… very high tackle count… carries with good end result… constant threat to make a good 20-25 meters with those long legs… providing his mass effectively to crunching the Drua pack… Finally he is returning to quality form… way to much injury time over the last 2 years… smart-strong-competent in his skills… caught every lineout throw aimed at him and delivered clean pass to whoever was down below… and he worked hard for the whole 80 minutes… Ned has to be in the top 5 for backrow honors… He knows what is required as he has been there before…
20 Go to commentsI think Sam Whitelock should not touch a return with a bargepole. He went out on a high, playing in the RWC Final. He would be coming back into a team that will be weaker than last years, and might even be struggling to win games, especially against the Boks. Stay in France, enjoy another year with Pau, playing alongside his brother.
10 Go to commentsRyan Coxon has been very impressive considering he was signed by WF as injury cover whilst Uru has been a standout for QR, surprised neither of those mentioned
2 Go to commentsIt’s the massive value he brings with regard team culture/values, preparation, etc. Can’t buy that. I’m hoping to see the young locks get their chance in the big games though.
10 Go to commentsAll good, Gregor, except that you neglected to mention Sam Darry amongst that talented pool of locks. In fact, given Hannah’s inexperience and the fact that Holland won’t be eligible until next year, Lord and Darry might be the frontrunners this year, to join Barrett, Tuipoluto, Va’ii and possibly Whitelock. In fact there might be room for all of them if Barrett played 6 (like Ollie Chessum).
10 Go to commentsHis value is stabilizing the ship 20 - 40 minutes out from the final whistle plus his valuable experience to the underlings coming through.
10 Go to commentsWhat is criminal is she acts like it's no problem her actions have have cause the Italian player to lose her playing career, lose salary, if she did this in day to day life she would be in jail, she is a complete thug!!!
3 Go to commentsCorrect me if i’m wrong but the sadas have to win all games running into the finals yeh nah?
1 Go to commentsDon’t like Diamond but the maul is a joke, the sight of a choke tackle creating a maul then players in offside positions flopping on it killing the ball but then getting the put in? Banal.
3 Go to commentsHopefully Tabai Matson returns to Crusaders as head coach next season.
1 Go to commentsstorm in a teacup really. Penalty only so play on as the try was scored. Now the real question is: why was Maitland allowed to pass the ball off the floor? That is illegal but refs never pick it up.
1 Go to commentsWhen Beauden Barrett signed his contract before the 2023 RWC to play in Japan in 2024, it was NOT part of a sabbatical agreed to with NZRU prior to his signing, as was Ardie Savea and Sam Cane. Barrett changed his mind after the fact and negotiated his return to NZ Rugby and he was given permission to be eligible for All Black selection straight away once he signed a new contract to return to the Blues in 2025. Therefore, why would anyone argue against Whitelock returning to the All Blacks straight away after his season is France is finished if he signs a new contract with NZRU which includes a Super Rugby contract in 2025? If Barrett can, Whitelock should be allowed too.
10 Go to commentsThe All Blacks will select 5 locks this season. Scott Robertson will most likely want to select 2 veteran locks who can start right away in 2024 and 3 young promising locks who he would like to be pushing hard for selection in the starting XV in two years time- 2026. Scott Barrett is a world class lock. Who would you rather start beside him this season against England, South Africa, Ireland, and France- Sam Whitelock or Patrick Tuipulotu? I would choose Whitelock over Tuipulotu all day, every day.
10 Go to comments