'I just have a feeling things are coming together at the right time for us'
Maro Itoje has more than a hint of menace around him this week. It was as early as Wednesday when he tweeted ‘Ready for the weekend’ and he was then defiance personified all the way through a Thursday grouped media Zoom call, leaving none of the dozen journalists who were hanging on every Itoje word in no doubt that Saracens are coming to Dublin on Saturday to do a job on Leinster – just like they did 16 months ago in Newcastle.
Much has changed since that May 2019 showpiece. Saracens’ reputable reputation has been sundered by the salary cap scandal that will see them drop into the Championship for 2020/21, a punishment that is the major factor behind why so much of their matchday 23 for the Aviva Stadium is so very different.
For instance, Liam Williams and Nick Tompkins are now in Wales, Alex Lozowski and Titi Lamositele in France, while Ben Spencer and Nick Isiekwe are at rival Premiership clubs – that’s a lot of quality beef to have packed up and shipped off.
It’s contributed to why the Londoners have largely been written off for their quarter-final, their European chances seemingly further diminished by the dreadful red-carded tackle that resulted in Owen Farrell’s suspension.
Itoje, though, was having none of the pessimism, his demeanour ahead of the crunch last-eight tie all full-on determination, the sort suggesting that the vice-like grip Saracens have on the trophy they have won three times in the past four seasons won’t be easily loosened.
Ready for the weekend ? pic.twitter.com/IaGC9UqySt
— Maro Itoje (@maroitoje) September 16, 2020
Vice-like is emblematic of Itoje’s style. Take his shirt tugging – when he grabs a hold he doesn’t tend to let go. Just ask James Ryan, his second row opposition this Saturday, and CJ Stander. They were the pair of Ireland players Itoje relentlessly held on to while in a two-on-one wrestle for England seven months ago at Twickenham.
He pulled Stander’s jersey over his head and nearly did likewise to Ryan in an extraordinary show of belligerence while he was lying on his own back on the ground. Now he is ready to sow it into the Irish once more.
Asked Itoje where he would rank in the pantheon a Saracens win over Leinster and he demurred. “I don’t know. Let’s win and I’ll tell you afterwards,” he said.
Living in the moment is very much his thing. “There is no doubt that Leinster are the form team, they are extremely well-coached, have done really well. They have a lot of very good players within their system. They are leading the way – but we have got a special team here.
“We have got some special individuals and some big characters who love these types of games, who relish these opportunities. Since the resumption, we have been up and down, but I just have a feeling things are coming together at the right time for us.
“Every week before I come into a game week I do my analysis and I was looking at our team and it’s just another reminder of we have a very, very good team. I was looking at the names on the team sheet and it was a further reminder we have got a serious team.
“We just need to put it all together and we will be fine. We have had players go, we have had players come in, we have had changes in personnel, but it’s never ever only one player that makes the difference, it’s always a team effort. There are always guys buying into the system and it creates something special.
“This week has been really good, there has been good energy, a good vibe around the place. The camaraderie, the vibe around training has been really good and there is really huge excitement for this game. It has been really positive.
"Do they play rugby in Barbados? I might play there"
– Maro Itoje has revealed he doesn't plan on being a one-club man and spending his entire career at Saracens w/@heagneyl ??? https://t.co/j12X7l29Us
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 18, 2020
“Owen is one of the best players in the world so we are going to miss him, but he has been a great help too as he always is to every week and his attitude and the way he has approached this from the team’s point of view, we are just really looking forward to the game.
“At Saracens, we are used to competing for trophies, we’re used to competing in all competitions towards the end. Given everything that has gone on in the last 18 months or so, we can’t compete in the Premiership so this is somewhere we can compete. It’s just really exciting.
“It’s knockout rugby, you win or you go home. You win or you’re out of the European Cup for a while. We have had a good history in recent times with the European Cup. It’s a tournament that we love as a group, a tournament we have a lot of respect for, a tournament that we want to be a part of and it’s a blessing that we do have this opportunity this season.
“I’m more excited by new memories. What motivates me personally is what I can do and what I can be a part of going forward, not necessarily things that have happened in the past or that kind of stuff. My energy is directed and motivated by what we can achieve going forward and we have got a talented group, we have got talented coaching staff that can do something special.”
Knocking Leinster off their perch would snuggly fit that category. Not since that St James’ Park afternoon when the clubs last clashed have the Irish side lost a game, their 25-match winning streak culminating in last weekend’s successful defence of their PRO14 title. Now comes their real moment of truth – have they refined their game enough to dethrone Itoje and Saracens?
“We don’t go into games to make up the numbers,” said Itoje, making light of the favouritism now heaped on Leinster even though it is Saracens who still have possession of the European trophy. “We don’t go into games just to participate. We go into games to win. For me, it’s a huge opportunity. I’m really, really excited, really grateful to be playing such a game given the circumstances. It will be nice to get out of the country for a little while to sunny Dublin.
“A different level is required because Leinster are a very good team. European rugby, quarter-final rugby is a step above normal, domestic Premiership matches so a different level is definitely required… I don’t have a fear of failure but it does highlight the importance of this event. This is a hugely important game.
“We don’t have next season for the Premiership or the European Cup. It’s important to do well and succeed but also enjoy the experience, enjoy the event, enjoy European rugby because nothing is really guaranteed. You don’t know what tomorrow is going to hold. It’s massively about relishing the moment.”
He is.
Leinster vs Saracens has a brief history but a memorable one. Who gets the win this weekend? #LeinsterVsSaracens #EuropeanChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/MRiFW3RHap
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 17, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
After their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
3 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
2 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to commentsBilly's been playing consistently well for 2 - 3 seasons now and deserves a look in at the top level. Ioane and ALB are still first choice but there needs to be injury cover and succession. His partnership with Jordie gives him first dibs you'd think. Go the Hurricanes.
3 Go to commentsIt’s not up to Wales to support Georgian Rugby. That’s up to International Rugby and Georgia. I sympathise with Georgia’s decent attempt to create this fixture. But for Wales the proposed match up is just a potential stick to beat them with and a potential big psychological blow that young Welsh team doesn’t need. (I’m Irish BTW.)
3 Go to commentsCale certainly looks great in space, but as you say, he has struggled in contact. At 23 years old, turning 24 this year, he should be close to full physical maturity and yet there exists a considerable gap in the power and physicality required for international rugby. Weight doesn’t automatically equate to power and physicality either. Can he go from a player who’s being physically dominated in Super rugby to physically dominating in international rugby in 1 or 2 years? That’s a big ask but he may end up being a late bloomer.
28 Go to commentsIf rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.
24 Go to commentsSouth Africa rarely play Ireland and France on these tours. Mostly, England, Scotland and Wales. I wonder why
2 Go to commentsIt was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
3 Go to commentsSad that this was not confirmed. When administrators talk about expanding the game they evidently don’t include pathways to the top tier of rugby for teams outside of the old boys club. Rugby deserves better, and certainly Georgia does.
3 Go to commentsLions might take him on if they move on Van Rooyen but I doubt he will want to go back, might consider it a step backwards for himself. Sharks would take him on but if Plumtree goes on to win the challenge cup they will keep him on. Also sharks showing some promising signs recently. Stormers and Bulls are stable and Springboks are already filled up. Quality coach though, interesting to see where he ends up
1 Go to comments