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Steve Diamond gives wonderfully blunt assessment of England's 'Curry at 8' experiment
Eddie Jones is viewing Tom Curry as ‘No8 project’ for England, but Sale boss Steve Diamond will not be playing the back row in that position for the ambitious Gallagher Premiership club.
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With Mark Wilson and Saracens’ Billy Vunipola unavailable, Jones controversially used Curry at No8 in the opening Six Nations loss to France last Sunday and he looks certain to continue with what many believe is an unnecessary experiment in next Saturday’s Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland at Murrayfield.
Jones has ignored viable alternatives at No8 in Harlequins’ Alex Dombrandt, Bristol’s Nathan Hughes and Exeter’s Sam Simmonds and is certain Curry can handle the different role.
However, Sale boss Diamond, who is preparing his team Friday night’s Premiership Cup semi-final at home to Saracens that will feature fit-again Wilson following knee surgery, doesn’t see any benefit for the Manchester-based club in giving Curry game time at No8 in a side captained by Jono Ross, their regular No8.
Diamond told RugbyPass: “I haven’t had any conversation with Eddie about Tom playing No8 and he won’t play at No8 for us.
(Continue reading below…)
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“Tom has a very good skills set but his best position is six or seven… but you have to remember I’m a mere minnow in the world of coaching. I have only seen this guy playing six or seven for the last three years!
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“The irony of it is this is that if your team gets to the final of a World Cup and the best player in that team is Tom Curry – for example – then why would you play him out of position?
“However, I always back the national coach and fair play to Eddie, he will see him in a couple of games and if it doesn’t work out he will revert him back to his best position.”
No let-up yet regarding England's hottest Six Nations topic https://t.co/eGOPToajN9
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 5, 2020
Turning to matters Sale, while Diamond is pleased that Wilson’s injury has now come right, it won’t be until the February 21 league game versus Leicester that South African World Cup winners Lood de Jager and Faf de Klerk come into selection contention.
De Jager has been recovering from the shoulder injury suffered in the World Cup final while de Klerk has been rehabilitating a knee ligament injury he collected on club duty this season.
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“Mark Wilson will be on the bench against Saracens for the semi-final and is ready for action having trained really well,” explained Diamond.
‘There is a nice balance to that back row and the issue that Eddie left out Dombrandt… that is causing a difference of opinion’
– @jameshaskell tells @chrisjonespress what he makes of the backlash Eddie Jones has faced over the @EnglandRugby back row
https://t.co/YYSXx3LRVT— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 4, 2020
“He will be covering all the back row positions looking after Ben Curry, Jono Ross and Dan du Preez’s positions. With Lood and Faf, we are looking at them being ready for Leicester at home.
“We have these two big games with Saracens – the semi-final and then at their place in the league – and the statistics show we have played them 17 times and beaten them only three times.
“I don’t care who they have missing because they have a system and a structure that works. In our quest to get to where we want to be as a club then we need to try our best in all competitions.”
WATCH: The Rugby Pod reflects on England’s loss in Paris and looks ahead to the Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland
Comments on RugbyPass
“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
3 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
2 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
3 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
3 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
3 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
2 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
4 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to comments