Maro Itoje admits to being taken aback by Steve Borthwick's novel idea

Maro Itoje admits he was taken aback when England boss Steve Borthwick suggested after the Six Nations that he miss the Nations Championship this summer.

The England and Lions skipper says Borthwick first approached him after the Six Nations to discuss taking the summer off after exceeding the recommended 30-game-a-season limit in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 campaigns.

Itoje says that the more he thought about it, however, the more it made sense, and he is now firing on all cylinders once again ahead of the new season after completing his first full pre-season with Saracens in 12 years.

“I was taken aback initially, mainly because it never entered my mind. It was never something that I thought was an option. I kind of have it in my mind that this is the way the cookie crumbles and I have to kind of power through,” said Itoje.

“The more I thought about it, the more I kind of agreed with it and the more time that went by, I thought this is the right thing to do. I hope the break has given me what I need to come back a better player.”

Speaking at the launch of the PREM season, he confirmed that despite missing games against Fiji, South Africa and Argentina, there are no regrets, as far as he is concerned, especially because it’s allowed him to recover mentally, which he says is harder than physical recovery.

“I feel very good for it, I don’t regret it all. In some respects it is a little bit weird being away from the team, especially whilst games are going on. But at the same time, I felt like it was the right thing to do,” he added.

“So I praise Steve (Borthwick) and Bill (Sweeney) for coming to that conclusion, and I very much look forward to what is to come. It is both the physical and mental recovery, and I would argue that the mental recovery is far more significant than it was physically.

“Physically, I am fine, and I was fine at the end of the season. Some of the ailments and niggles that I had in previous seasons have pretty much gone away.

“So I feel like I am in a good physical condition. But mentally it was a heavy year, a busy year both personally and professionally, so it was nice to have a bit of time to take a breath,” he added.

Sabbaticals from international rugby are almost normal, especially in places like New Zealand, but Itoje thinks it’s something that could happen far more often in England.

“Since I have been involved with England, I have been involved in pretty much every campaign. Saracens were a top team for a large period of time, so we were going deep into Europe, deep into the Premiership, and that has also helped with Lions tours and selections.

“I have been very fortunate to have had what I have had. But the consequence of that is that I have tended not to have a break, or the breaks that we have are very short.

“The internationals had their five or six weeks off, depending on the player and the club and then they come back and within three to four weeks a lot of them will be playing the first PREM game after a three to four-week pre-season.

“Some people are blessed. Wiggy (Richard Wigglesworth) could probably have a month off and come back and be the fittest man in the Premiership. Unfortunately, a lot of us aren’t built like that.”