Why Ben Spencer can be the solution to England's lack of succession planning at nine
Opportunities don’t always come early at Saracens, but if you’re patient and put in the work, the payoff is usually worth it.
It certainly applies to George Kruis and Jamie George, neither of whom could match the meteoric rises of Maro Itoje and Owen Farrell, but it may not be truer of anyone quite as much as it is of Ben Spencer.
The 26-year-old scrum-half arrived on the scene with plenty of promise, representing the England U20 side back in 2012, but ahead of him at Saracens were two iconic figures of the club in Richard Wigglesworth and Neil de Kock.
Playing time would come in the Anglo-Welsh Cup and A League competitions, but it was understandably a tough duo to break up in the regular matchday 23.
As the seasons have gone by, playing time has gradually increased for Spencer and whilst his impact has been felt for a number of years now, it’s this season when he has firmly established himself as the number one option. In previous campaigns, Spencer got his fair share of starts in the Premiership, but when a big fixture rolled around, such as the recent Heineken Champions Cup semi-final against Munster, he would usually find himself deputising for the venerable Wigglesworth.
With that seeming to change this season, and Wigglesworth taking up a slightly more reduced role, just as de Kock did when Wigglesworth took the nine jersey, Spencer has put down a claim for further honours with the consistency and level of his play.
Even prior to this season, Spencer had been on Eddie Jones’ radar, with the Australian calling him into a number of training camps, before giving him his England debut in Johannesburg last summer. With Ben Youngs and Danny Care having made up the starting and bench pairing for the majority of Jones’ tenure, opportunities have been limited for other scrum-halves, as evidenced by the fact Spencer has won just the three test caps to date.
He’s not alone in that, either, with Dan Robson having won just two under Jones, Wigglesworth adding six to his tally and Jack Maunder the other to feature, with the Exeter Chief having picked up his solitary cap on the tour of Argentina in 2017.
With Care seemingly having fallen out of favour with Jones this year during the Guinness Six Nations, speculation has been rife as to who might end up deputising for Youngs in Japan at the Rugby World Cup later this year. Or, should Youngs suffer an injury, who would replace him in the starting XV, with Jones having preferred Care and his impact in a role from the bench.
It has largely seemed a two-horse race between Spencer and Robson and with the Wasps nine recently being diagnosed with blood clots in his leg, Spencer’s surging form could not have come at a better time for both England and Jones, not to mention Saracens, who are targeting a rare domestic and European double.
Spencer’s duel with Conor Murray in the semi-final against Munster was an example of the maturity and composure in his game now, as his control on the tempo of his side and the areas of the pitch they were playing in can only have pleased Jones, who has regularly championed that same ability from Youngs.
The half-back added to his stock a week later against Wasps, shredding the side from the West Midlands with the defensive reads and sniping runs that Robson provided so effectively to them during the last couple of seasons.
It is clear that his tutelage under the pair of de Kock and Wigglesworth, as well as working with coach Dan Vickers, has given Spencer the control and game-management skills that, combined with his natural athleticism, have turned him into the complete scrum-half.
Not only could this be key for England at the upcoming Rugby World Cup, where they may or may not need a complementary nine to go with Youngs, but it could be vital for them moving forward into the next cycle, too.
Whilst English rugby has been producing very talented players at most positions during the last five or six years, scrum-half has been arguably the one position where that production doesn’t quite match up with other 14 spots on the pitch.
As mentioned earlier, Maunder won his first cap for England back in 2017, but a role behind Nic White hasn’t seen him kick on and really push Youngs, Care and co for a spot in the senior England squad yet, whilst Robson’s face, despite high-level play in the club game, has seemed not to fit until very recently.
Alex Mitchell faces a similar situation to Maunder, sitting behind an incumbent nine, whilst Will Chudley has performed well at club level but not been given a sniff of anything further. Harry Randall has flashed attacking ability in a looser structure at Bristol Bears and Stu Townsend and Sam Maunder encounter the same bottleneck at Exeter that the elder Maunder brother does. There is talent there, but no one has really banged the table to be the next player for England to build around at scrum-half.
The truth is, Spencer aside, the standout scrum-halves in the Premiership this season have all been South African, with Francois Hougaard, Cobus Reinach and Faf de Klerk all consistently excelling. Reinach should be squarely in the frame for player of the season in the competition, Hougaard’s defensive and breakdown display on Sunday secured Premiership rugby for Worcester and de Klerk, despite perhaps not quite reaching the heights of last season, has still been the heartbeat of Sale.
Whilst great for the Premiership and the Springboks, this is not the best news for Jones and England, with Care and Youngs turning 33 and 30 next season respectively and some sort of succession plan needing to be in place.
It is not a situation unique to England, either, with a number of other Tier 1 nations approaching the end of their current scrum-halves’ international careers. Nations like Ireland and Australia face a similar dilemma to England, whilst, unsurprisingly, the All Blacks seem well-prepared to move onto their next man.
That said, there is no reason why Youngs can’t go on beyond the Rugby World Cup and help with the transition to the next generation of English scrum-halves. It seems as if it will be necessary, too, with very little international experience among the alternatives, something which, in the checks and balances of Jones’ largely successful tenure as head coach, would have to go down as a mark against him.
There is no youngster currently tearing up trees and putting himself into a position to be a prime candidate to go into an apprenticeship under Youngs next season, although talk of White returning to Australia could provide an opportunity for Maunder to push forward his case at Exeter.
It shows that it’s not always possible to pluck out the best 20-year-old and have them embark on an international career over a decade long and that sometimes the supply just won’t be there to meet the demand, no matter how much coaches and fans would like it to be so.
At 26, though, Spencer could be well-positioned to be the next man hold down the England nine jersey, even if that does mean further patience over the next 12 months or so. He could then assume the mantle of mentor when the next promising nine emerges from the age-grades, ready to be fast-tracked into the senior set-up.
Thankfully, that’s something Spencer’s club career has prepared him well for and it’s a role he could excel at with England.
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Comments on RugbyPass
I’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
4 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“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
4 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.
6 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…??? 🤑🤑🤑
8 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
8 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)
4 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.
6 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.
4 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 comments