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Sam Warburton makes 'massive' Lions prediction about England rookie
Former British and Irish Lions skipper Sam Warburton has been so impressed by new England cap Chandler Cunningham-South that he has tipped the 20-year-old to be in the blindside conversation for next year’s tour to Australia.
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Just eight months ago, the English-born/New Zealand-raised back-rower was left unemployed after the financially stricken London Irish collapsed.
After trying out for North Harbour U18s, Canterbury U19s and even dabbling in rugby league when training with the NZ Warriors, he had joined the Exiles academy in February 2022 and soon blazed a trail into their first team.
That quick-step impact ultimately stood to him. Harlequins put his mind at ease over his future by offering him a deal for the 2023/24 season while he was away in South Africa with the England U20s, but never could have imagined he would so quickly make the step up since then to Test-level rugby.
Cunningham-South was easily the most impressive of Steve Borthwick’s replacements when making a debut last weekend in Rome off the England bench, immediately announcing himself on the scene with a brilliantly executed try-saving tackle.
He is now primed for a second run after being retained among the replacements for this Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations encounter in London versus Wales.
That’s a fixture that ex-Wales captain Warburton can’t wait to see unfold, especially given how bowled over he has been by his fellow back-rower this winter.
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The Canterbury ambassador said: “I saw this kid play pre-Christmas because Harlequins were playing Cardiff. There was one kid who stood out and I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, how is he not in the England set-up?’
“Fast forward to the Six Nations and he came off the bench the other day for England and had 15 minutes – Chandler Cunningham-South is a serious player. He’s 6ft 5ins, explosive, big, aggressive and technically very good as well. There are not many No6s around and there is always room for an enforcer in your pack.
“You need someone who can spearhead the effort. Joe McCarthy is doing that now for Ireland and Cunningham-South can be that player at six who is really disruptive. In 18 months, he is going to be red hot and in the conversation (for the Lions).
“To play international rugby you have got to have a certain athletic ability at the top level. Look at the top back row players who are having an impact; you have got (Caelan) Doris, Jac Morgan, Ben Earl, Aaron Wainwright. These guys are exceptional athletes, very physical and very tough.
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“I look at Cunningham-South and he has got all that – plus size. Probably the biggest and most athletic back row the home nations have at the minute.
“He’s only 20 which means he has still got another 18 months of growth physically. And he has got 18 months of just getting Test match experience, playing with England and playing with Quins.
"My agent was just looking for something for me in a professional environment… I didn’t really have the opportunity to do that in NZ" @heagneyl ??? talks to Chandler Cunningham-South about England, London Irish and finding a new club https://t.co/uoc521tdZS
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 25, 2023
“He has just got that athletic ability and size I haven’t seen present in any of the home nations, and the important bit is he has got the mentality, the bit between his teeth, that aggressiveness you need at level. And you can’t coach aggressiveness.
“He seems to have the full package; I just hope he gets some game time. Great athlete, good in defence, good ball carrier. He could be that massive six I think the Lions could really benefit from and be destructive.”
Despite his delight over the emergence of Cunningham-South with England, Warburton is predicting a tricky afternoon for Borthwick and co at Twickenham this weekend. “The pressure is on England and people will be thinking they should put Wales to the sword given that Scotland beat them.
“But given that the pressure is off Wales, it will suit them. England are red-hot favourites. Wales have not won there (in the Six Nations) since 2012 and before that, it was 2008. They were both Grand Slam teams who won at Twickenham; you don’t win at Twickenham as an average team.
“The odds are stacked against Wales. Twickenham was one of my favourite places to play but it was always so hard to go there. If I was a betting man I’d go with England, but it does suit Wales that the pressure is off. If they can put England under some pressure early, just like Italy did last week, it could be a tricky afternoon.”
- Canterbury ambassador Sam Warburton was speaking at the Canterbury British and Irish Lions preview event, which gave retailers the first look at the 2025 Lions jersey
Comments on RugbyPass
Should be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
68 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
1 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
2 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real speech. They claim free speech. The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
68 Go to commentsNot a squeek out of Leinster for weeks about this match. So quiet. The first team have been quitely building for this encounter under Nienaber’s direction. All fresh, all highly motivated. They are expecting a season’s best performance from Northhampton. They will match that. They will be fresher and apparently they will have 80,000 out of the 83,000 shouting for them. I do expect Northhampton to turn up big time. Not to be missed. On a tangent it is evident how the loss of a few Premiership teams has in some respect helped other Premiership teams and England. More quality over less teams makes the teams better, which has a knock on effect on England. Not the only factor contributing to England’s rise but one of them.
2 Go to commentsOur very own monster teddy bear Ox😍💪
17 Go to commentsThis is might be the most generalised, entitled, patronising, out-of-pocket cultural indictment on a group of people you’ll ever see on what is supposedly a sports publication. I can only assume the author is weak like a woman or homosexual. I’m feeling an incredible range of emotions but I am not quite sure how to express them. I might go beat up a hockey player - assuming that’s okay with Duane and the boys? 🙂
9 Go to commentsBest thing the Welsh clubs could do is apply to join Gallagher prem surely be more exciting matches for there support than they have now.
2 Go to commentsRugbyPass writers are useless! you guys should get a real job because you all suck at writing about rugby!!!
9 Go to commentslooking forward to RWC2027 …. Boks on mission impossible for the Three-in-a-row, ABs to prove they being on par, France wishing to crown the “DuPont-era”, Ireland knocking on the Semi-Door ….. until then we’ll probably have to deal with Weird Ben’s fantasy-RWC23 (fun fact is, the drivel always creates a flooding of comments) …..
221 Go to commentsBen Smith you really make some good points in this article, the Springboks were not close to perfect and good still beat the All Blacks, imagine if they were as good as they were against France what a hiding the All Blacks would have gotten… maybe another Twickenham drubbing
221 Go to commentsIt is a good argument to keep the Rebels for one more year but also isnt this just opening the door as well for keeping them beyond 2025. If they can create some sort of financial stability in the next year and if their performances lift as they have this season then how would RA even cull them after that? It might be the most cost effective decision at this stage and perhaps many people are guilty of keeping relationships going because of the cost to decouple but then again when does that ever work out well?
29 Go to commentsDear Ben Smith you are a genius! God please become the next all blacks coach that can take on the mighty BOKS. Your rugby acumen is second to none - imagine your dads sperm bounced as unfortunately as that oval ball did….we would not be blessed with your presence. Just as the all blacks were missing a man you too are missing a chromosome for 80% of your life, so your insights are not only profound but ring true from your own experiences. Just as the TMO interfered with citing an illegal pass I am sure your local authorities interfere with your illegal passes you make on women - How dare they!!! God forbid that rugby be officiated fairly. You are the right man for the job. Next all blacks coach is here ladies and gentlemen Miss Ben Smith (He/She/They/IT)
221 Go to commentsHuge engine this guy and great to see him back ..The amount of clean outs he does at the ruck are ridiculous !!
3 Go to commentsThe level of desperation in this article is just embarrassing.
221 Go to commentsSome silly trolling in the comments.
9 Go to commentsEverywhere you turn some irish journo is advocating Ireland as the greatest, reasoning that the wc is a 4 year cycle event so, they say wc doesn’t matter it’s the rugby in between that should account for the accolade. If there was no wc then some substance could be gained, however in my opinion the moment that defined Ireland’s fate against the abs was 37 phases of repeated head bashing against a brick wall. If a change in strategy or a tinker with the game plan was executed then things could've been vastly different. And to point a finger the let down was in the hands of the number 10.
68 Go to commentsI have heard it asked if RA is essentially one of the part owners and I suppose therefor should be on the other side of these two parties. If they purchased the rebels and guaranteed them, and are responsible enough they incur Rebels penalties, where is this line drawn? Seems rough to have to pay a penalty for something were your involvement sees you on the side of the conned party, the creditors. If the Rebels directors themselves have given the club their money, 6mil worth right, why aren’t they also listed as sitting with RA and the Tax office? And the legal threat was either way, new Rebels or defunct, I can’t see how RA assume the threat was less likely enough to warrant comment about it in this article. Surely RA ignore that and only worry about whether they can defend it or not, which they have reported as being comfortable with. So in effect wouldn’t it be more accurate to say there is no further legal threat (or worry) in denying the deal. Unless the directors have reneged on that. > Returns of a Japanese team or even Argentinean side, the Jaguares, were said to be on the cards, as were the ideas of standing up brand new teams in Hawaii or even Los Angeles – crazy ideas that seemingly forgot the time zone issues often cited as a turn-off for viewers when the competition contained teams from South Africa. Those timezones are great for SR and are what will probably be needed to unlock its future (cant see it remaining without _atleast _help from Aus), day games here are night games on the West Coast of america, were potential viewers triple, win win. With one of the best and easiest ways to unlock that being to play games or a host a team there. Less good the further across Aus you get though. Jaguares wouldn’t be the same Jaguares, but I still would think it’s better having them than keeping the Rebels. The other options aren’t really realistic 25’ options, no. From reading this authors last article I think if the new board can get the investment they seem to be confident in, you keeping them simply for the amount of money they’ll be investing in the game. Then ditch them later if they’re not good enough without such a high budget. Use them to get Jaguares reintergration stronger, with more key players on board, and have success drive success.
29 Go to comments