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The biggest learning Marcus Smith recently got off Jonny Wilkinson
Marcus Smith is convinced he will avoid falling into the fame trap outlined as a potential pitfall by England head coach Eddie Jones. Smith took ownership of the fly-half duties during the recent autumn series that produced victories over Tonga, Australia and South Africa, but he was also cautioned by Jones over the need to stay grounded. The Harlequins playmaker is the rising star of English rugby and is expected to direct operations at the 2023 World Cup, but Jones is concerned by the possible “distractions” facing young players.
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Smith, however, insists that his brothers Luke and Thomas will help ensure he keeps his focus. “I’m very confident about dealing with it. I’m very lucky to be 22 years old and have a brilliant team around me to support me and put their arm around me,” Smith said.
“Brighton is not too far from here so if ever I need an escape and a break it’s easy to get down there, eat my mum’s rice and enjoy my brothers’ company. It’s nice to have amazing people around me and I am really grateful for that. I hope my brothers are proud of me. I wouldn’t have done any of those things without them.
“They have both been truly supportive to me as well as challenging me, which I love. I still remember loads of times we used to go to the park and try to sidestep each other. They would mug me off or read my sidestep, which would frustrate the hell out of me. Again that’s what we enjoyed doing growing up.
“Those two guys are paramount to my career. They will definitely keep me grounded. After the South Africa game, they were laughing at my drop goal, so I have got to work on that. My parents will be protective when they need to be, but they will also celebrate with me when I achieve something that they are proud of. I have got a brilliant balance in my mum and dad and two younger brothers.
Rookie Georgian referee Nika Amashukeli is poised for an atmospheric Champions Cup debut at Castres versus Harlequins 11 months after the pandemic denied him his originally scheduled maiden outing at that level…#Harlequins #HeinekenChampionsCup #CASvHARhttps://t.co/DOk5S0Q7nm
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 10, 2021
“Whatever happens, whether positive or negative, I’m very confident that they will guide me on the right path. Every single young player who has played for England will have had it at some point and for me, it’s about surrounding myself with brilliant people who are able to share their bits of wisdom. As long as I continue to listen to them and be open to their feedback then hopefully I can stay on the path I am on now, but it’s not a straight line.”
Smith was mentored by Jonny Wilkinson during the recent autumn campaign, completing two sessions a week with the ex-England great. “For me, the biggest learning I got off him was in terms of mental preparation,” Smith said. “I learned to deal with things that don’t always go your way, how to deal with things that do go your way and just how to live and how to be a good person.”
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Comments on RugbyPass
The Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
3 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
3 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
3 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to comments