'I'll work my hardest to get as close as I can to him'
Marcus Smith will resume making the tea for Owen Farrell this autumn as England’s playmakers look to develop the creative relationship needed for a successful autumn.
Both starting fly-halves for their clubs, the pair are expected to pick up where they left off against Australia in the summer in an axis that will see Farrell resume at inside centre.
Once the weekend’s round of Gallagher Premiership matches are completed, they will unite at England’s training camp in Jersey next week with the aim of enhancing their understanding on and off the field.
The autumn opens against Argentina at Twickenham on November 6 and Smith reveals they will bond over tea, biscuits and a growing rivalry on Xbox.
“The relationship is building so hopefully that can translate on to the field,” Lucozade Sport athlete Smith told the PA news agency.
“I’ll work my hardest to get as close as I can to him, make him as many teas as he needs and hopefully that can translate on to the field.
“We’ll have teas together, catch up, have some biscuits if we’re lucky and we’ll try and spend as much time as we can together to build that rapport.
“We get on really well, we try to challenge each other. He challenges me, which is brilliant for my development.
“And we have a good time together. We played Xbox together, he always beats me at NBA but I can always get him at FIFA.
“He’s extremely competitive and hates losing at anything. If ever I beat him at anything, I let him know about it but he does the same to me. It’s a mutual respect and relationship that we have.”
Eddie Jones first selected the pair together against Australia at Twickenham a year ago but that experiment ended early when Farrell sustained ankle ligament damage with the same injury to the other foot then forcing him to miss the Six Nations.
A 2-1 series victory over the Wallabies in July was their first run of Tests in tandem but the jury remains out on whether they are the right fit.
“My relationship with Owen has improved over the last couple of years. I’ve loved playing with him. He’s a brilliant team-mate and a brilliant player,” Smith said.
“He wears his heart on his sleeve and he leads by example. To have him on my side in the four games I’ve played with him has been amazing and has given me an extra confidence boost.”
Smith is acutely aware of the responsibility on England’s shoulders as the game prays for a sparkling autumn as the antidote to the crises it faces.
Wasps and Worcester are in administration amid concerns that other financially-troubled clubs could follow, while concussion hovers as an ever-present existential threat.
In addition, the rising number of in-match stoppages have taken a toll on internationals to the point that Jones has called for urgent reform and numbers in the community game have dwindled since Covid-19.
For all the gloom, the Premiership has never been more entertaining and Smith sees a path out of the uncertainty.
“I just feel that sport – and especially rugby – comes together when it’s on the back foot,” the 23-year-old Harlequins player said.
“What’s happening will galvanise people, make people dig in and graft to make it right. Not just at the professional level, but at the grassroots as well, which for me is the most important.
“I encourage people to help in any way they can because I’m sure a lot of people can influence in their own circles and lift the profile of the game, which we need at the minute.
“For those of us players who can still play, the Premiership has provided the chance to showcase what you’ve got. It’s an expression of how the players are feeling because they’re all buzzing to be out there.
“In my short career, more than ever the players are talking about rugby. Everyone’s got their plans and ideas for what it should look like.
“Some of the senior boys have a much bigger opinion than me because they’ve been in the game a lot longer, but I love listening to them.
“If I can help in any way I would love to help because rugby’s been an important part of my life, not just in the first five years of my career, but since I’ve been growing up.
“Our family used to watch my dad play when I was three or four so it’s been in my life the whole time. It’s a brilliant sport, not just as a spectacle, but to bring families and people together.”
:: Marcus Smith is the latest edge of your seat athlete to partner with Lucozade Sport, the nation’s favourite sports drink, who is helping to provide free workout sessions across the UK with OurParks.
Comments on RugbyPass
🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
26 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusades , you can keep going.
1 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
26 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
26 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
26 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
26 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
11 Go to comments