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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.
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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.
“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.
“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’.
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“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.
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“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.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Honest, discipline, humility… Priceless.
2 Go to commentsSo many excuses. No mention of the SA number 2 being taken out illegally in the 2nd minute. That act of foul play had a massive impact on the SA game. Face it, NZ play pretty dirty very regularly, and it’s only since 2016 they’ve been held to higher officiating standards via stricter officiating and TMO reviews. They deserved to have a man down. Sorry. Fix the yellow and red cards and NZ will win more RWCs. Plus, there WAS a knock on invalidating the one try, so it was NOT a try. Period. Here’s a Kleenex…
207 Go to commentsOverheard conversation between NZ and SA rugby fans everywhere: We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! We’re the greatest! No we’re the greatest! Ireland are arrogant! True but they beat you! We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! Etc. etc, etc.
18 Go to commentsTypical crap Aussie weather
11 Go to comments“If they’d have beaten England, I still feel we would have been talking ‘is this the best team ever,’ ‘is this the best team that’s ever played in the Six Nations'” he said. “I still think they’re not quite that good. I actually don’t think they’re that good.” So Trimble is saying he doesn’t think this is the best 6N team of all time. He is silent on if it is the best Irish team of all time. Can’t disagree with him. Just another misrepresentative clickbait headline from the guys at RP.
18 Go to commentsWow, do we really still have to listen to all the excuses and “unfairness” of it all. Even blaming the bounce of an egg shaped ball for the loss. But the article is about context, so what about the Springboks having to play the other 5 teams in the top 6 and still beating a comparatively rested AB team on a very empty tank.
207 Go to comments“Teams would generally have three coaches below their head honcho; attack coach, defence coach, forwards coach” do they? I’m not sure what the NZ set up is tbh, but the other 4 sides top 5 sides all have very different structures to the one outlined in the article! As well as attack, defence, and forwards coaches, SA, Ireland, and France also have specialist scrum coaches. England have a specialist scrum coach too, but arguably don’t have a forwards coach, with that role taken on by Borthwick. SA also have a backs coach in addition to defence and attack, and Ireland and England have fitness coaches, with England also having two skills coaches.
2 Go to commentsWorst article I've read in a while. Trying to disguise a backhand slap as a compliment. The whole article is a bit weird and negative. I think South African men are emotional in general… think Clad le Clos’s father 2012 London Olympics.
2 Go to commentsIreland are going to win the world cup.
18 Go to commentsIt was the strangest result ever. Etzebeth should've been yellow card for his cynical retiring move and a penalty try. Birth second half tries by the Allblacks were fantastic and the TMO operating outside the law to rule out the first try was egregious. Yes, the boks got the win but it was through some bizarre officiating that allowed them to sneak home against 14 men that dominated them. The quieter Bok supporters know and acknowledge the Allblacks were the better and dominant side. Justifying the win because they beat a pre world cup Allblacks selection is silly.
207 Go to commentsA very English thing to do hey Courtney, blerrie kant
4 Go to commentsIt sounds like Andrew is trying to convince himself or has just lost all perspective. The team did look jaded for the last couple of games of the six nations but a few things were wrong there. Italy tackled their hearts out and made Ireland work hard for every try. Outsmarted by Scotland? Huh? Ireland got held up over the line about 4 times. Scotland did nothing on attack the whole game other than one breakaway near the end. A recharge and reset is needed which they hopefully will have had before the SA your.
18 Go to commentsIncluding SA and Argie teams was great for the quality of rugby, but middle of the night games and player travel/ jet lag make that unworkable. I think that SA in Europe and Argie building an American league with USA, Canada etc would be better long term. If Oz can't sustain Rebels then next cab off the rank should be a Japanese team. Keep regional comps to time zones, both club and test rugby. Then existing test windows for test tours plus RWC.
6 Go to commentsMisogynists have feelings too!
2 Go to commentsCrowd sizes of the URC v the Premiership must be a big factor.
1 Go to commentsWell you’ve made a proper tit of yourself, haven’t you! 😂
173 Go to commentsBen it's beyond their comprehension-
207 Go to commentsThanks Sam. Interesting read. Harder or easier for Parling to come into a completely new setup where performance was abysmal last time out? I’d suggest easier to be better but, as you suggest, will be a lot to do with how much latitude he’s granted. Hopefully all he needs. With hybrids like Holloway, Hannigan, Swinton and Leota as options at 6 we have the basics for a strong lineout. BPA returning means we have good options at 2 also with Faessler, Porecki and Uelese, although Jordan is a scrumming beast rather than a dart thrower. I’m typically a pessimist or realist but that’s never applied to the Wallabies
2 Go to commentsMad how this somehow contained absolutely zero information.
4 Go to commentsI’m looking forward to attending the Twickenham match, I don’t think it will have a bearing on the outcome of the grand prize itself but it will tell us more about each teams’ preparation and game plan. It’s hard to look past one of the big four (I’m including Canada) lifting the trophy in 2025 but sport is a curious thing, there will still be twists and turns in road ahead.
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