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Wasps' Gopperth backs 22-year-old England prospect Umaga to avoid pitfalls of second season syndrome
Jimmy Gopperth is backing Wasps teammate Jacob Umaga to avoid the defensive traps that will be set for one of the outstanding young English rugby talents when the Gallagher Premiership returns next week. Umaga, the son of Mike, the former Samoa international and rugby league player, and the nephew of Tana, the ex-All Blacks captain, was a product of the Leicester Tigers academy before moving to Wasps.
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An England U20 international, he was called into Eddie Jones’s Six Nations squad in January only to be brought down to earth by the head coach, who informed the 22-year-old he possessed the body of a used car that wouldn’t get sold.
That was classic Jones, challenging a youngster to prove him wrong and Umaga responded so well he wore the Wasps No10 jersey for nine successive matches, including the three Premiership wins that took them up to fifth and just two points behind Northampton, the team they meet a week on Sunday when their season restarts, quickly followed by games against Worcester and Sale.
Lee Blackett, who took over as Wasps head coach from Dai Young in February, opted to redeploy All Black No10 Lima Sopoaga to full back to accommodate Umaga in a move that would become familiar to fans of Beauden Barrett when the Blues Super Rugby season started in New Zealand. Like the Blues, the decision gave the team two play makers while outside the precocious Umaga were Gopperth at inside centre and All Black Malakai Fekitoa.
That gave Umaga three outstanding talents to lean on when times get tough and according to Gopperth, that testing period is about to get even more challenging.
As Wasps prepare for that crucial game with Northampton – one of seven games in 28 days – Gopperth used his own experience to explain the task Umaga now faces with opposition defence coaches having had four months of lockdown to study the outside half’s game.
Gopperth told RugbyPass: “It always happens and I was the same. I ran riot on my first season of Super Rugby and the next one I was getting banged right, left and centre.
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“They do look at guys but Jacob is a really good footballer with a good head on his shoulders and with the experience around him I think he will continue to blossom and do what he does best, which is enjoy himself. When he does that, he plays really well and that’s the main thing for him.
“We have great games against Northampton and everyone at the club is buzzing to get back out there. As players we have to be physically and mentally ready to go and that’s not just matches. We may have to play and then have to be training with just one day break to help prepare the guys who are going to be playing in the next one.
“It will be tough for the whole squad to stay focused and that is what we have to do and with seven games in 28 days we have to be right on it.
“Lee gave us a talk about it and said it was all hands on deck and it is all about putting the team first. We were in great form before the break and nothing has changed for us – we have just had a break and now we are back with the same focus and excitement about what we are trying to achieve.
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“We have tweaked things a little which is exciting. We had some great momentum before Covid hit but that’s life and we have nine games to put ourselves in a good situation.”
Gloucester head coach George Skivington has dismissed questions about his departure from London Irish as he prepares to lead a new era at Kingsholmhttps://t.co/KWRn0ZW8eX
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 4, 2020
With many of the Premiership squads now bolstered by new signings, there is even more work to do off the pitch to identify threats that did not exist before.
Gopperth added: “I haven’t faced this before and it’s like having a transfer window – it’s bizarre! It will feel like a different season and a mini-competition.
“We will get to the end of nine games and say ‘that was a quick season’. It has been a long time since we played so it does feel like a new season.”
Game on. https://t.co/26Sebj0qyk
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 4, 2020
Gopperth has been watching his fellow Kiwis get the rugby world back turning with the Super Rugby Aotearoa competition and believes the Premiership needs to show the same ability to adapt quickly to the refereeing of the offside line and entry to the ruck which caused so many penalties in the early games in New Zealand.
“The offside line is the big one and that comes down to your discipline and they are looking at the tackle entry,” he said.
“I think it will suit us because we have some unbelievable jackalers like Thomas Young and Jack Willis who get over the ball so quickly. Hopefully, it will work to us and it will come down to who adapts best.
“It was a nightmare in the first couple of rounds of Super Rugby but then they all go the hang of it.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Exciting 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.
11 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.
11 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 commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
1 Go to commentsGeez you really have to question the NRLs ability to produce players of quality. Its pathetic. Dont the 25mil in Aus produce enough quality womens players. Sad.
1 Go to commentsBulls fan here, and agree 100% with the conclusion (and little else) of this article. SA sides should absolutely f-off from the champs cup until we get fair scheduling, equal support for travel arrangements and home semis. You know, like all the european teams get.
26 Go to comments