How big a loss to English rugby is new Wales capture Nick Tompkins?
Losing Nick Tompkins to Wales is a blow for the English player pool – and there is no other way of looking at it.
The 24-year-old is a versatile centre with the ability to play both twelve and 13 to a high standard, he has very good attacking skills, has been honed in Saracens’ impressive defensive systems and offers an eye-catching blend of speed and footwork.
As such, it’s understandable that plenty of English fans have acted with dismay at the loss of his talent to rivals Wales, who have named him in their Guinness Six Nations squad, despite the riches on offer domestically in the Gallagher Premiership.
He has had to be patient for his opportunity with Saracens, with England under-20s team-mate Maro Itoje being catapulted into the spotlight much earlier than the centre.
When chances have come, Tompkins has rarely failed to take them with both hands. His hat-trick against Gloucester in last season’s Premiership semi-final was as potent a reminder of his considerable ability as you are likely to find.
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Despite that, Tompkins has not seemed close to an England senior call-up under current boss Eddie Jones and follows the path already trod by another of his under-20s team-mates, Ross Moriarty, by declaring for Wales after representing England at age-grade level.
The closest Tompkins has come was back in the summer of 2016 when England Saxons toured South Africa. His appearances against South Africa A did not tie him to England, as the opposition was not the designated capture side of Springboks at the time.
There is no doubt that Jones and the RFU would have liked to have Tompkins as an option moving forward. However, with the likes of Owen Farrell, Manu Tuilagi, Jonathan Joseph, Henry Slade and Piers Francis all very much in the primes of their careers, it’s unlikely that the centre would have featured prominently for England in the coming years despite his clear and obvious ability.
England fans can't fathom why Nick Tompkins has been allowed to get picked up by their Wales rivals https://t.co/BJ09qf9Jbp
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 15, 2020
With Wales opting for Hadleigh Parkes and Jonathan Davies – combined age of 63 – as their preferred centre pairing at the recent World Cup, the pathway that Tompkins has chosen makes a lot of sense for him.
Again, Jones has shown no proclivity for selecting him beyond his inclusion on the Saxons tour back in 2016, and the Australian has moved much more towards a midfield pairing of a ball-handling playmaker and a physical, hard-running carrier.
It’s a selection preference which has seemingly hurt Joseph, too, with the British and Irish Lion not playing the prominent role of late that he did earlier in Jones’ tenure.
It’s hard to say Tompkins fulfils either of those roles specifically and is much more of a rounded midfielder. His passing is solid and he is powerful enough to get over the gainline on a square angle, but he is neither of those things in the way that Farrell and Tuilagi are respectively.
It’s not a criticism. He has attributes that other players in the England mix do not, something which Wales will be very glad for, but there is a case to be made that had he not opted to switch allegiance, a senior cap may never have come with England.
The competition won’t relent either with Ollie Lawrence, Cameron Redpath, Max Ojomoh and Phil Cokanasiga among the young talents who will hope to be pushing claims for selection in the coming years, not to mention Joe Marchant at Harlequins.
Marchant had been part of the WRU’s English wishlist alongside Tompkins, Max Clark and Jonny Williams, and securing the outside centre to England prior to last year’s World Cup may yet go down as one of Jones’ best achievements as national coach.
The 23-year-old is about to depart for a loan spell in Super Rugby with the Blues, something which should only further enhance him as a player, and he brings his own array of game-breaking ability. England invested in Marchant last summer and that may well have been the writing on the wall for Tompkins who certainly has the skills and the hunger to make a success of Test rugby.
Meanwhile, England continue to build with the midfield they put together and had a lot of success with at the recent World Cup. They will also get a fascinating look at how Marchant develops in Auckland and continue to monitor the likes of Lawrence and Redpath.
“The most frustrating thing (under Gatland) was that I had never been told why I wasn’t a part of the squad."
– @chrisjonespress talks to @WillGriffJ ??????? #sixnations https://t.co/rhoKZCJxqt
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 15, 2020
England have a large player pool and a lot of migration between with Wales, Scotland and Ireland, making situations like this one ultimately inevitable. Losing talented players may hurt a loyal fanbase, although it is better that these players be able to show what they have got at the highest level rather than wait for something that may never come in their home nation.
Maybe the blow of losing Tompkins is reinforced by Welshman Louis Rees-Zammit’s recent rebuffing of English interest, but international rugby is set to be richer for the presence of Tompkins and that is something to celebrate.
If you belong to one of the nations of haves in terms of player pools, you have to accept that every now and again you’re going to lose a player to the have nots.
WATCH: Wayne Pivac announces his Wales Six Nations squad
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid 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 comments