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'My Grandma could squat more': Ex-England S&C coach names the most 'rugby strong' star

Forwards from both teams compete at a disintegrating scrum during the Autumn Nations Series 2024 match between England and South Africa at Allianz Stadium on November 16, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Patrick Khachfe/Getty Images)

Having been part of the England set-up for a decade, former strength and conditioning coordinator Tom Tombleson worked with a huge number of players in their physical prime and saw his share of freak athletes.

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Steve Borthwick is preparing for his second campaign without Tombleson, who left his role with England in the summer in the spate of exits which also included head of S&C Aled Walters and assistant coach Felix Jones. Since his departure, the former England Sevens international has worked as rehab performance coach with Manchester City as well as GB Sevens’ S&C head coach.

But he joined two players who worked under him extensively, Ben Youngs and Dan Cole, on their For the Love of Rugby podcast recently, where he provided a deep dive into the world of strength and conditioning.

On the podcast, Tombleson was questioned about which players produced the best numbers in a variety of areas, from strongest to quickest and everything in between.

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“Gym strong, Marler’s very strong isn’t he?” Tombleson said, listing the recently retired prop as one of the biggest squatters alongside Kieran Brookes and Will Stuart.

“Kieran Brookes was super strong, Will Stuart, Coley has got a very impressive front squat. But it’s got to be Marler. Technically Gengey [Ellis Genge] is great.”

Youngs then asked which player is ‘rugby strong’, emphasising that “there is a difference”.

“Dickie, my Grandma could squat more but he is strong and tough, animalistic,” Tombleson replied.

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“Dickie, he’s the first one that comes to mind. Courts [Courtney Lawes] obviously, Luds [Lewis Ludlam], animal, he just brings all of the rage from the heavens into each contest and that’s strength. Browny? They’re functionally really, really fit for purpose and you don’t see these guys ever get smoked. Zach Mercer, he just rides tackles and he’s strong for what he does. If we’re talking about gym strong, they’re often not the same thing.”

Cole and Youngs proceeded to quiz the coach on the pound-for-pound strongest player he has worked with, as well as quickest and fittest.

“Pound-for-pound in the forwards is probably Ben Earl. He’s not super heavy but he’s very powerful. His legs, he can jump and he’s very fast. Pound-for-pound power, Jonny [May], when he jumps he just sits up there for a little while then he comes down. Adam Radwan, Henry Arundell, they are top two percentile, in any sport, very, very powerful.

“If you’re talking linear straight speed, Adam Radwan and Henry Arundell are lightning. If you’re talking fastest moving, that might be stepping or evasion, Ant [Anthony Watson]. He can do you like a kipper in a phone box. Crazy feet. JJ [Jonathan Joseph] could move laterally like a super crab. These guys could move. They’re fast, but they’re not traditional fast, they just move fast. The top-speed guys are your thoroughbreds like Jonny [May], Arundell, Radwan.

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“Fittest guys, Richard Wigglesworth when he was a player, Alex Goode and Chris Ashton had big lungs. Forwards-wise, Callum Clark and Tom Wood, they could run all day. They had really big Yo-Yo scores, which was what we were using at the time. Big, big engines. Those guys would run loads. Sladey has got a huge engine, he can just run and run and run and he just doesn’t slow down. Faz [Owen Farrell] just didn’t slow down.”

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Comments

5 Comments
J
JW 88 days ago

Whos Dickie

P
Pn 87 days ago

Luke Cowan-Dickie i'd assume

B
Bigal52 88 days ago

And they're really playing good rugby,beating every team because they can squat with heavy weights. Not

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J
JW 2 hours ago
Why NZR's Ineos settlement may be the most important victory they'll enjoy this year

It really all depends of how much overseas players would be paid (by NZR) to play for the All Blacks. I’ve not heard a peep on this front from any author suggesting it’s a good idea.


If it’s nothing (a player gets his weekly paycheck from the club and thats it (which we know is definitely not the case in Ireland and France, or SA even I think?), then maybe it would retain more SR level players given that they’ll be getting the “AB” component (which is about where things stand, Burke for instance would have had to had his Sader contract upgraded to an AB one (think above Pero levels) to be on similar money.


I’d having to imagine if a player is getting paid to do nothing over the international windows though, they are going to want to get paid extra for appear for the ABs, so in this situation, it’s hard to see many players being retained, yes.


I’m pretty sure they flew to Japan and met in person.


I’ve heard/had these discussions numerous times. I don’t think theres anyway to judge the interest that would be retain in SR. For one, it might be a more entertaining league as a result, as the JRLO is compared to Europe, despite it obviously being a lesser standard.


If SRP is of a lesser standard and now able to use Japanese and American players to bolster teams, perhaps those markets more than make up for the downturn in NZ and Aus? Perhaps it gives NZR flexibility to create a more fit for purpose interdomestic competition, and interest actually increases? All you might need is a proper pathway from school to pro?


Razor asked NZR to keep an open mind. Did NZR answer any of these questions to themself?

24 Go to comments
J
JW 3 hours ago
Kyren Taumoefolau All Blacks stance splits opinions on eligibility

Yeah of course it can be, it manages a good commerical outcome when 100 million people are following it. I’m saying rugby is no where near even remotely close to getting the payoff you’re talking about, never mind the distinct lack of anyway to implement it.


So you’re going for the dirty approach. I’m not surprised, it’s the only way to easily implement it right now. I wouldn’t see the benefit to doing that myself. A draft, if purely feasible in it’s own right, doesn’t need to provide commercial benefit at all (if it works, that’s all it needs to do, as it no doubt did back in america’s heyday). But without the advantageous backing of sponsors and interest levels, if you pick the wrong method to implement it, like a dirty approach, you do potential harm to it’s acceptance.


The aspect’s of the approach you chose that I don’t like, is that the franchises are the ones spending the money of the U20’s only for there opposition to get first dibs. Personally, I would much prefer an investment into a proper pathway (which I can’t really see SR U20s being at all in anycase). I’m not exactly sure how the draft works in america, but I’m pretty sure it’s something like ‘anyone whishing to be pro has to sign for the draft’, and results in maybe 10 or 20% of those being drafted. The rest (that accumulative 80/90% year on year) do go back into club, pronvincial, or whatever they have there, and remain scouted and options to bring in on immediate notice for cover etc. You yes, you draw on everybody, but what is generating your interest in the drafties in the first plaec?


This is your missing peace. If some come through school and into the acadamies, which would be most, you’ve currently got three years of not seeing those players after they leave school. Those that miss and come in through club, maybe the second year theyre in the draft or whatever, aged 20/21, you’re going to have no clue how they’ve been playing. NPC is a high level, so any that are good enough to play that would already be drafted, but some late bloomers you might see come in NPC but then Sky’s not going to broadcast that anymore. So what’s generating this massive interest you’re talking about, and most importantly, how does it tie in with the other 7 clubs that will be drafting (and providing) players outside of NZ?


Is the next step to pump tens of millions into SRP U20s? That would be a good start for investment in the youth (to get onto international levels of pathway development) in the first place but are fans going to be interested to the same level as what happens in america? Baseball, as mentioned, has the minor leagues, if we use that model it hasn’t to be broad over the whole pacific, because you’re not having one draft right, they all have to play against each other. So here they get drafted young and sent out into a lower level thats more expansive that SR, is there interest in that? There would be for large parts, but how financially viable would it be. Twiggy tried to get a league started and NPC clubs joined. BOP and Taranaki want SR representation, do we have a mix of the biggest clubs and provinces/states make a couple of divisions? I think that is far more likely to fan interest and commerical capabilities than an U20 of the SR teams. Or ofc Uni fits a lot of options. I’ve not really read anything that has tried to nut out the feasability of a draft, it can certainly work if this spitballing is anything to go by, but I think first theres got to be a need for it far above just being a drafting level.

36 Go to comments
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