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Jackson Wray: Why I'm staying at Saracens
Jackson Wray has insisted that he never even considered the idea of leaving Saracens following the announcement that the club would be relegated to the Championship as a result of salary cap breaches.
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His declaration of loyalty comes in a turbulent year for Saracens, with demotion to the second tier confirmed in January.
Wray has experienced many highs and lows during his 15 years in north London since starting in the Junior Academy, and although the latter has outweighed the former in 2019/20, departing the club he loves was never an option.
“I love it here,” he said. “I love working with all the lads that are here. I love the environment and how the club looks after people. My family are happy, my kids are happy, and I just love what the place is about.
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“The people are what make the club special. I go to work every day enjoying what I’m doing, testing myself, always feeling like what I do is appreciated and when I’m not doing things well how we go about it.
“The environment and how the lads enjoy time together is great. People say about it being a family and we actually are. I spend so much time with the lads at the club and away from it too that it is an absolute no-brainer for me to stay.
“Winning trophies has been brilliant and what comes with that, but off the field it’s everything we do. We do a lot together and after you win or lose it’s making sure you’re tight and we’ve always been that way.
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“It’s a proper family. The closest friends I have are the ones I’ve known since I was 14 but I love spending time with all the boys at the training ground, and then away from that the time with our families. It’s just a great place to be.”
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Disappointing, angry, upset and annoyed are among the words Wray has used to describe the rollercoaster of emotions he has felt since the salary cap verdict.
However, together as a group the players have had time to digest, talk through and move on and Wray is now looking to the future which will see a number of young players progress into the first team.
“Obviously it was disappointing when the news broke,” he said. “Right now, I’m over it with all that is going on now. I’m just looking forward to kicking on next year physically and maybe help the body by not playing 30-odd games a season! It’ll give my body a bit of a breather and I’m looking forward to it.”
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Wray continued: “There will be a lot of opportunities for young guys to have a base and really kick on next year.
“They’ll get a lot of experience of prepping and reviewing week-to-week and will be some of the main guys doing what they need to do and that will be good for a lot of people. I’m excited to see how good they can become and how good they will be from that experience.”
A positive from the current campaign has been the exposure of first team rugby for many at Saracens in their late teens and early twenties.
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The likes of Brad Barritt, Richard Wigglesworth and Wray have been tasked with leading the troops on the field, a job the Sunderland-born backrower has enjoyed, and that has created some fond memories.
“Leading a young group has its challenges,” he explained. “I’ve just tried to be a calming influence on the lads and try to motivate them through actions but also through words as much as possible.
“It’s about trying to bring the best out of a really talented group that can really kick on. At times we’ve had to really dig in and we’ve had some really difficult games like Racing 92 away, a really difficult place to go with a young team.
“Obviously Wasps more recently wasn’t a great night for us but you have to have context in your head that these guys are doing as well as they can and it’s about relaxing them as much as you can to bring the best out of them, because the best of them is more than good enough.
“I’ve just tried to be that person who can do that in the week in training, the build-up to games and during games, trying to be that calming influence that can allow them to perform well.”
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— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 30, 2020
On memorable games, Wray added: “Gloucester game was great after we got deducted points. Going down there and beating them was fantastic and a real performance; we fought for everything and were under pressure from the crowd and the media.
“I’ll never forget that game. That really stands out for me as a highlight this season in terms of how we came back from that.
“Also, Munster away, although we didn’t win, we went to Thomond Park, we fought unbelievably hard with a young, unexperienced team, and that for me is another game I’ll remember.
“When we’re in adversity, when we’re under pressure… Ospreys away going down to 14 is another. We went down to 13 for a period and beat them away. All similar moments.”
Wray is currently recovering from concussion sustained in the penultimate fixture before the postponement of all rugby activity until at least 20th April.
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— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 30, 2020
Both his injury and lack of upcoming games has put a hold on the backrower’s climb to 250 Saracens appearances, a landmark he is excited about making.
The 29-year-old graduated from the Senior Academy in the Class of 2008 alongside Owen Farrell, Jamie George and George Kruis, and is proud to have played his part for more than a decade.
“I am so looking forward to making it to 250, it’s a brilliant milestone for anyone and I’m very proud to have played as many games as I have.
“To almost to be at 250 is great and I’d love to play just as many times as I can for this great place. Hopefully I can do that over the next few years and do what I can to make this place as good as it can be.”
Watch: The Breakdown is joined by a host of star names.
Comments on RugbyPass
Thanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
81 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
3 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
3 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
3 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to comments