Why Marler warmed to 'jumped-up, entitled, little private school kid'

England prop Joe Marler has revealed his first impression of club and country colleague Marcus Smith – and it wasn’t very flattering. The Harlequins teammates have been named in Steve Borthwick’s squad for Sunday’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final versus Fiji in Marseille, with Marler as the sub loosehead and Smith as the starting No15.

They are now good mates and Marler is tipping Smith to star in the Stade Velodrome knockout stage game, but their bond only grew over time after a shaky start. “He’s a big-game player. I’m really happy for him to get his opportunity to start a game in the World Cup.

“He has shown it off the bench in the moments in the games where we have needed it and I hope that he can do that from the start.

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“He is obsessed with wanting to be the best. His drive to want to be the best every single day is infectious around the group. In a similar way to Owen (Farrell), both their drives to be the best raises the standards of the group otherwise you get left behind – and I have been left behind many a time.”

That threatened to happen when Marler had an awkward start way back to his relationship with Smith at Harlequins. He was quickly won around, though.

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“At the club, he was confident early on, even to the point where I turn around and say, ‘I’m going to have to say something to this guy, he’s gobbing off at me’. I’ve been at the club for 10 years and he’s gobbing off at me.

“For me, personally it took a little while. I was like, ‘He’s a jumped-up, entitled little private school kid’.

“And then you realise how good he is at rugby and why he’s doing what he’s doing and I was like ‘I’m going to listen to him more because he’s going to get us into position to win more rugby games because he knows what he’s talking about’.

“That blew me away when he was younger and he has managed to carry that on throughout his career so far. He has done it consistently at club level, it’s about now doing it consistently at international level, and what better place to do that than starting in a quarter-final.”

Sunday’s appearance in the No15 England shirt is just the second time that out-half Smith has been named to start in that role.

He featured off the bench just seven weeks ago when Fiji won at Twickenham, scored one second-half try and creating another, but it wasn’t enough and Marler isn’t taking anything for granted about this World Cup rematch.

“It’s going to be very difficult. They [Fiji] are a world-class outfit and they have already done a job on us in the summer in the pre-tournament warm-up game, and they are full of confidence.

“We have heard it all week how confident they are. It will be a really intense game,” suggested Marler, who is delighted to be back involved with England after a Test rugby break.

New England No15 Marcus Smith perfects his step at training in Aix-en-Provence ahead of Sunday's Rugby World Cup quarter-final. #ENGvFIJ #RWC2023 #EnglandRugby pic.twitter.com/ASxSII88jB

— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 13, 2023

“When it gets to knockout time and it’s do or die there’s a bit more of a spike in training, there’s a bit more of a fear factor.

“Not for everyone, I know there are some who don’t like that fear-factor point, they find it too negative so they tend to focus on the positive of it all. But I like the fear of that if we don’t get it right we’re gone. That motivates me personally.

“When you are not here or not involved for whatever reason, you miss it and you crave to be back involved. Previously I think I have taken it for granted.

“Knowing that this is the last time I’ll get an opportunity to play in a World Cup quarter-final, to pull on that shirt, is a special feeling. I’m very proud and honoured and privileged to be able to have that chance.

“The likes of Ben Youngs, Courtney Lawes, Danny Care, Dan Cole, guys that we’ve been together since we were 16 or 17, we have got close bonds to motivate us and drive us on to make this last memory special.”