'I knew I was getting booted out' - James Haskell joins The Rugby Pod
Wasps and England flanker James Haskell joins The Rugby Pod to discuss his future, the Lions and Eddie Jones’ visit to his house.
The 32-year-old says the door to the England squad remains “slightly ajar” but revealed that he knew Jones was coming over to deliver bad news so he didn’t roll out the red carpet or splash out on fancy food and drink but just made him a green tea instead.
“I knew he wasn’t coming up [to the house] to offer me the captaincy, so I didn’t get out the fine china or anything like that but I made him a green tea and didn’t threaten to chase him down the road in my digger,” he told The Rugby Pod.
“I knew I was getting booted out. If he was coming up to offer me something good and things were going really well, then I might have really laid it on for him.”
Haskell told former Scotland international Jim Hamilton and ex-England fly half Andy Goode that it was frustrating watching the autumn internationals from afar but that he knows what he has to do to get back into the squad and that is focus on what sets him apart.
“Obviously, they won three out of three in the autumn and the back row boys went well but I’ve just got get on with it and worry about what I can control,” he said.
“He just said that my form hadn’t been good enough. He felt that I wasn’t performing and I needed to go away and sort that out. He has always been very honest and open about that kind of stuff and obviously the door was not fully closed. I think it’s slightly ajar.
“For me it’s just about playing well. If you go well for your club and they go well, then you’re constantly putting your hand up and they can’t ignore you.
“I think when you’ve got to a certain point, it’s just about bringing out your point of difference. There’s no point in trying to reinvent the wheel. I think for a large part of my career I was trying to be all things to all men and trying to be good at everything and you’re just never going to be able to do that.
“People have a point of difference. Goodey was good in the bar after the game and good for morale. Jim was great for penalties and if you wanted a game slowing down and disrupted, you’d call on him.
“I need to bring my physicality to games and he wants me hitting people hard and doing that kind of stuff, so it’s very simple and you’ve just got to go and deliver that. He didn’t ask me to start taking drop goals or try to be a playmaker because that’s never going to happen.”
The back rower, who has won 75 caps for his country, also revealed that he spent a lot of time with the Irish contingent while on tour with the British and Irish Lions in the summer and that there were a few interesting characters in the group.
“Tadgh Furlong was very nice. I was sharing a room with him and looking lost and he gave me a big hug. I thought that was very nice and welcoming,” he told The Rugby Pod.
“Sean O’Brien was a very interesting character to share a room with and I wouldn’t say hygiene was top of the list of priorities.
“He was very good but he was a bit of a selfish shellfish. My missus sent me a couple of care packages that I left on my bed and when I came back he’d unwrapped them and eaten the Ferrero Rocher.
“CJ Stander was a lovely bloke but he made me watch a few weird videos on his phone of hunting and stuff like that. That was pretty aggressive.
“The amazing thing was the kit man really. We had a guy called Rala [Patrick O’Reilly], who was a 70-year-old guy and is an Irish legend and what I didn’t realise is that the tradition the night before a game was that everyone would go to his room and he’d get out sweets and cups of tea. Not in a weird way though!
“The boys would then relax and tell a few stories but as the night progresses the Irish boys get more and more aggressive and they start trashing this bloke’s room.
“The best night I heard about was when they Blu-Tacked all his possessions to the ceiling, including his glasses so he couldn’t see where anything was, but one night they also set his alarm for on the hour every hour from 4am and hid his glasses in the cupboard.
“He couldn’t find his glasses to turn the alarm off and then they ordered him an anchovy and pilchard sandwich to be hand delivered as well.”
Haskell is firmly back on club duty now and, although he is out of contract at the end of this season, insists he hasn’t spoken to any other clubs and is focused on performing well for Wasps with the ultimate goal of adding to his 75 England caps as well.
“I’m out of contract with Wasps [at the end of the season] but I honestly haven’t had a conversation with anyone about anything. I’ve just been trying to get everything in order with my playing,” he said.
“This was obviously the first time I’d been fully left out of the England squad when I was fit and able to be involved, so it just refocused me about what I wanted to do.”
You can listen to all previous episodes of The Rugby Pod Here
Comments on RugbyPass
I like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
8 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
8 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
8 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
8 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
41 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
57 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to commentsGood article. A few years back when he was playing for the Cheetahs, he was a quiet standout for exactly the seasons stated here. I occasionally get to see his games in the UK, and he has become a more complete player and in many ways like an Irish player. His work ethic is so suitable to the Leinster game. I wonder if Rassie would have him listed somewhere.
3 Go to commentsResults probably skewed by the fact that a few clubs have foreign fly halves in their 30s, but most teams have young English scrum halves. Results also likely to be skewed by the fact that many teams rely on centres and fullbacks to provide depth at 10, whereas they will need to stock a large number of specialist backup 9s.
1 Go to commentsI really get the sense that when all is said and done, the path of least resistance will end up being a merger of Wasps & Worcester that essentially kills the Worcester Warriors brand and sees Wasps permanently playing at Sixways. I’m not saying that’s what should happen or what I want to happen. I just think it’s the easiest rout to take and therefore, will be what happens. Wasps will definitely return to play first, and I suppose it all depends on if they can find support at Sixways. If people turn up and support Wasps in that community, at that ground, I bet they drop the Sevenoaks plan and just remain at Sixways. Under the radar but not totally unrelated, it looks as though London Irish are going to be brought back from the dead by a German consortium and look set to return, likely to the remade Championship. It’s set to have 12 clubs next season with 14 in 2025/26, what do you want to bet those extra 2 are Wasps and London Irish?
3 Go to commentsThe shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
3 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to comments