'I'm under no illusions... the hard work has to come first and you have to stay in the moment'
What Tom Curry hopes will become the adventure of a lifetime begins this Sunday at Pennyhill Park. England’s World Cup opener against Tonga in Sapporo on September 22 is still 13 weeks away, but the jockeying for position is underway with no certainty about what might transpire.
Eddie Jones’ decision to keep players from the Gallagher Premiership’s four semi-final clubs on ice until a July 7 camp at the Lensbury means that those involved in the two rendezvous prior to that can’t be fully sure they will be involved for the long haul.
Just look at this particular week’s curveballs. Of the 15 forwards chosen in the 29-strong squad, two of the half-dozen back rows – Alex Dombrandt and Lewis Ludlam – are uncapped, their presence sure to guarantee that Curry, Sam Underhill, Mark Wilson and Brad Shields can’t take anything for granted about the way their national coach is thinking.
Curry walked away from Sale in May for his end-of-season break with no resounding words from Steve Diamond ringing in his ears. “He is a big believer in making sure you get your rest away from rugby. It was just that really,” said the 21-year-old to RugbyPass.
Truth be told, though, there was no complete getaway from rugby to be lapped up. Not with Japan on the horizon. Even when in Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera, Curry was seen out on his bike keeping the lungs ticking over for what lies ahead in these two foundation weeks with England before Jones more revealingly lays his RWC 2019 cards on the table with the squad for the July 7 camp.
https://www.instagram.com/p/ByQiNQJho7U/
“The conditioners basically let us do our own stuff but it was still about getting the body ready if we got a call into camp.”
Making the cut for the finals in Japan is a big deal for the Sale back row who was named the Land Rover Discovery of the Season at May’s Premiership awards night.
Defensive workrate and energetic breakdown earned him the plaudits and the trick now is to ensure the mightily impressive campaign – which included five consecutive England Six Nations starts – doesn’t go to waste as he hunts down passport validation for Japan.
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“Any time you represent the country is hugely special and a massive honour, but I’m under no illusions. The hard work has to come first and you have got to stay in the moment.
“If you think about stuff that is going to happen in the future you will probably let it slip by, so it’s about making sure you are fully focused on the here and the now, how I can get better, keep working hard and whatever happens happens. It will be up to the coaches to make the decision.”
Curry was still at school at Oundle in Northamptonshire when the last World Cup was on, a 17-year-old looking on from afar as England crashed out at the pool stage in the tournament they were hosting.
29 players have been called up for next week's England training camp ?
See who's in ? https://t.co/S6BByCkCzW pic.twitter.com/oKDtATDKop
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) June 20, 2019
“I didn’t go to a game but I remember watching on TV in school and just thinking Twickenham is a special ground but when it was lit up for the World Cup, it just seemed like a different ground. I just remembered thinking how special the occasion actually was in a weird way, just how it looked so different. It was almost on another level.”
He was six days shy of his 19th birthday when Jones first took a shine, pitching him into June 2017 battle against Argentina in San Juan. It was a full year again before he got a second opportunity but he has since proven that his 6ft 1in, 106kg frame has the durability to thrive at the highest level.
He laughs that coaches and his twin brother Ben, whose back spasm injury in the lead-up to a Barbarians match gave Tom his initial in with England, keep his very grounded despite coming so far so fast.
“I’m very aware you can get too far ahead of yourself and as soon as you start thinking you are better than you are, you don’t improve. I just like the feeling that I’m improving. That is what motivates me, to just keep getting better.
“I have always been a big believer in that, just fully immersing yourself in whatever lies ahead. In terms of have I achieved as much as I want, there is no real measurement to that. I’m happy with what I have done and I feel like I have got a lot more to give. That is all that matters.
‘It [a full Six Nations] does fill you a lot of confidence that you can fully embrace it. It’s a lot of confidence gained from that. International rugby definitely does feel another level up from Premiership in terms of the speed, physicality. To be able to perform and play at that level and be there for the whole seven weeks filled me with a lot of confidence.”
Curry is a bit of a Frankenstein in the manner of how he has moulded himself into becoming an England No7. There was never any one particular role model, just a conscientious effort on his part to analyse a whole generation of opensides and cannibalise various skills for use in his own repertoire.
His approach worked brilliantly and given what he has so quickly achieved, he’d be stoked if there were youngsters now out there forensically looking at him in the same way he used to suss out the stars of the game.
“I hope so. That is a huge thing for any sportsman, for young people to look up. To be able to not only inspire but influence people, that is a massive honour for any sportsman.
“It depends on what they are thinking. It totally depends on them. I imagine a lot of people probably won’t know what I do but a few people might. It depends on what they see,” he said, nonchalantly adding that the rough and tumble of being a poacher liable for some rough breakdown treatment isn’t something that overly concerns him.
“Obviously, getting your head down in there is pretty interesting. There is an element of decision making. If you can see someone coming from a mile away and there is not much chance to get the ball, there is a decision to make about getting out of there. But as far as the level of protection I don’t really know. I just enjoy it.”
It’s fun that attracted its share of notoriety last February, his bloodied, photogenic head drawing comparisons with Terry Butcher, a long-ago England football captain who made headlines for spilling claret and then having a white headband turn red as his match went on.
I counted 15 uhms https://t.co/lkdhVRNDR7
— Thomas Curry (@TomCurry98) October 24, 2018
“Yeah, I did (know who Butcher was) after the first 10 people telling me,” quipped Curry with a smile ahead of a Pennyhill date that is another step along the way towards him becoming a stand-out player in his own right without being referred to as one of the Curry twins.
“I’m getting used to it,” he said, reflecting on how England duty is keeping him away from his once inseparable twin Ben, whom he lives with in Manchester and plays with out of the same Sale back row in the Premiership.
“It has been about being able to adapt and it has been fine. Everyone in the England camp gets on, so no worries about it. We were still able to text and FaceTime and speak, so it was absolutely fine.”
WATCH: Part one of the two-part RugbyPass documentary on what fans can expect in Japan at this year’s World Cup
Comments on RugbyPass
The more direct approach to your past time this time I see Ben. Look, it doesn’t need to be said, anyone watching the match knows the ABs played better and just got robbed by the officiating, but lets face it, their dominance in the match was only because South Africa choked and forgot how to play rugby with the ball. South Africa were still the better side. Of course Ireland and France were also better sides that New Zealand. Possibly even England on WC performances.
1 Go to commentsGreat mythology - no surprises Ox didn't talk about being driven backwards by Laulala in the RWC final!
4 Go to commentsJust shows how a hand up can help as long as the invitation is accepted. Good story.
1 Go to commentsKarma is a powerful force
21 Go to commentsFrench players said the same thing to the All Blacks after their pool match in 2011. But the French can back up their s**t talk with action.
67 Go to commentsThe problem is the officiating & changing rulings,& TMOs.Last weekend I saw a 9 penalized for a crooked scrum feed! the last time I saw that rule applied was In about 1975!!!!!!!!.Late or not the incident is history & Australians alleging that Kiwi rugby supporters wear eye patches is a bit rich.Try listening to Australian Commentators.Every new player who has an above average game is suddenly the next great sensation.
21 Go to commentsEvery Irish fan in the stadium celebrated like they had won the tournament after the SA and Scotland games so yeah, the way Etzebeth tells it stacks up. It was definitely ‘In Their Heads’!
67 Go to commentsEtsebeth is right about 1 thing. Boks after winning a RWC have been crap. Only in 2009 did they reach the heights of what a RWC Champion should look like but that was only after 3rd/last in the TriN 2008. Lost a home series in 1996 (vs ABs); didnt win even 1 x Rugby Championship after 2019. ABs and Wallabies and England at least played like Champions after winning RWC.
67 Go to commentsCrusaders will knock one of the top seeds out in the first round, hope it’s not my Chiefs
28 Go to commentsEben really seems like just a deeply unpleasant man.
67 Go to commentsDMac. BB crabs too much at 10.
4 Go to commentsIt is every boys dream to be a Springbok. I managed it in a discipline other than rugby…But rugby, I have always engaged with passion. It does my old heart good to see the mix of people in the team and this displays the possibilities for this wonderful country. The logo “stronger together” says it all. This current edition of the Boks is nothing short of inspirational.
4 Go to commentsIrish people about the best damn people on the planet. OK, in the NH. Fijians are the World’s best happiest friendliest people. But as far as European cultures producing good people, Ireland stands alone. But on the rugby pitch there is a creeping arrogance that has detached from humility. eg Sexton abusing a match referee, and not for the 1st time. He was extremely lucky to make it to the RWC, strings were pulled. And O’Mahoneys sledge to Cane was lowballing, attacking an opposition Captain seems opportunistic and gutter talk. Cane is a real gentleman. Have never seen ABs unleash after the whistle like they did on O’Mahoney after QterF, it was well deserved. Unlike Bok supporters, the Bok players understand history. Massive amount of respect between Boks and ABs is evident, they get on well and have throughout history. Even Pinetree Meads best mate (except his old cobber Kel Tremain) were Springboks, friendships forged after tours. And Meads was always targetted given his star status (he even played 2 x Tests with a broken arm). On the contrary, ABs and Wallabies famously dont get on, bad blood after Aussies not taking offer of beersies postmatch.
67 Go to commentsHaha god NZ journalism is so crap listen to this guy “We’ll be proven in a few weeks if our baseless bs can stick” lol Everywhere else uses experts to write stuff but here they’re just career guys that don’t care about what they write, NOT CONCEDED A TRY IN YEARS lol > “Naturally, you’re looking for performance, sometimes that means you can’t think logically or use evidence to arrive at any sort of clarity of decision. Pretty much sums it up to a tee Paul ignores the articles in here about then runs off each team this year, that Penney is just a yearly stop gap until, who, Ellison is released by ABs, the huge imbalance of the injury front between teams at each end of the table, or who it was that _should_ have been coach. But of course if they actually do evidence and investigative work theyre shy of their article not hitting that sensationalism boundary and lose revenue. Leaving us non the wiser. They look like they would have been best with a geeup coach this year to turn around the razorless depression the clubs obviously going through. Hard to think of someone fitting the Bill to have been chosen instead, the clown Cheika? Id have been tempted to double play and entice O’Gara down. Hell maybe that is who they are waiting for, he wants a international gig and it could be after Scmidt or razor
28 Go to comments_Dan Carter weighs in on who should be Scott Robertson's All Black 10_ Dan: “It’s a toss up between Beudy and Dmac, although Mounga would be nice - but he can’t… so…” The Rugby Public: “Thanks Dan. For nuthin!”
4 Go to commentsEngland did this way back for the Croke Park match in the 2000’s. The shame actually seemed to weigh on them during the match. It will not be easy for Northhampton players to rationalize how their army went into a stadium of a major city of the then United Kingdom and opened fire indiscriminantly into terraces killed 14 and wounding scores. I am sure with a pro setup they will get this balance right. I live beside the stadium. A very old woman on the street remembers as a very young girl the crowds of people filling the street to escape the massacre. A lot of water under the bridge and the match has really little historical relevance for Irish/Leinster supporters any more. Those ghosts were freed in the trashing of England in the 2000’s match. Sure, it will motivate Leinster but Northhampton should not overly consider it or weigh on it in my opinion. Dowson is right to learn the historical importance and Northhampton are indeed giving the occasion due respect. It is important to show respect. But that’s enough for Northhampton. Fair play to them. On to the rugby now.
15 Go to commentsDouble World Cup Champions ? Wow since when did 4 become 2!
215 Go to comments“See you in the final” from a winning (Irish) team is just away of wishing a team well for the rest of the tournament. It’s actually saying I hope we both make it to the final. Etzebeth was the only player who PUBLICLY said that his team would make the final after that match. Does anyone honestly think Ireland who took 100 years to beat NZ and got hammerred by them in 2019 would for the slightest moment not take the perilous threat as seriously as it should be taken? Getting sick of Boks and Kiwis who spend all year every year trying boasting about how great and humble they are and then accusing others of arrogance. Respect people by trying to understand them before hitting a pretty humble people with this crap.
67 Go to commentsThe feelings of gratitude I feel when thinking about the Boks is difficult to describe. It really means a lot to people here. I would flat out ask Ox for a big hug if I met him in person. And then probably pass out after the squeeze. Totally worth it.
4 Go to commentsFarrell seems to be an outstanding coach and Ireland a very well prepared team. But they looked like they had no plan B against NZ. Maybe they really were looking past them, as Eben says.
67 Go to comments