England Under-20s: Strengths, weaknesses and question marks
Every year the same question follows the announcement of the England Under-20s squad: is it better or worse than last year’s group?
England are one of the few countries in the rugby world blessed with the size of player pool and resources to ensure they never truly have a fallow year, although it is certainly true that position groups can vary in strength from season to season.
Only eight players are returning this year from last season’s squad and that inevitably means it will be quite an inexperienced group. Five players have also been called up who missed out last year but were still professional players, meaning they bring some senior rugby experience to the group.
That leaves 19 first-year players involved in the 32-man elite player squad, all of whom were only leaving school around six months ago. It’s these players – the fresh faces – that RugbyPass will focus on most closely.
Three of the real position groups of strength in this England age-grade are the fly-halves, scrum-halves and full-backs. That is nothing new at fly-half where England have been very productive as a rugby nation of late, although the surplus of talent at nine and 15, particularly the former, will be welcomed at the RFU.
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Beginning at No10 and last year’s incumbent starter, Manu Vunipola, is joined by Newcastle Falcons’ Will Haydon-Wood, Gloucester’s George Barton and Sale Sharks’ Tom Curtis. If history is anything to go by, England will not look at them as exclusive fly-halves and will instead endeavour to get them involved at inside centre or full-back as well.
It’s an interesting group. Barton was on the verges of an early under-20 cap during his final year of school, Haydon-Wood was arguably the standout ten in the Academy League – something which won him an under-19 cap – and Curtis dazzled for school side Sedbergh, a group which arguably comes as close to a full-strength Premiership academy as you are likely to find in school rugby.
Of the four, Curtis is the most versatile. He has played in the centres and on the wing previously for Sale Under-18s and he could easily replicate that with the England Under-20s during the upcoming Six Nations. A possible role in the midfield, where England have lost the likes of Cameron Redpath and Ollie Lawrence, could beckon.
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Moving on to the scrum-halves and this has been a perennial problem position for England at the senior level. The talent coming through the age-grades has been noteworthy, but they have not done enough to take over starting jobs at their respective Gallagher Premiership clubs. This class could change that.
Sam Maunder is back from the 2019 season and will reunite with Vunipola at the heart of England’s attack, although he is also joined by Raffi Quirke of Sale and Jack van Poortvliet of Leicester Tigers. The latter two have managed to keep Jonny Law, also of Leicester Tigers, and Newcastle’s Callum Pascoe both out of initial EPS selection.
Whether or not Quirke and van Poortvliet can bypass players such as Faf de Klerk and Ben Youngs in the coming years is up for debate, but their talent is not. They are very gifted half-backs and it’s clear to see that competition at the position this season is higher than it has been for quite some time.
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Finally, we come to the full-backs and arguably it is the most talent-rich position that England have to call on this year. Josh Hodge returns for another crack at under-20s success and he is joined by Leicester’s Freddie Steward, Worcester Warriors’ Noah Heward and Sale’s Joe Carpenter.
That means there is currently no spot for Harlequins’ Louis Lynagh or Northampton Saints’ Tommy Freeman. England’s frequency with which they have played a traditional fly-half at the position also needs to be taken into account.
Hodge may well be deployed on the wing to make space for one of the specialist full-backs in the squad, with Steward definitely ticking the physical prototype you would look for at the position, as well as gaining plenty of senior experience with Leicester so far this season. The omission of Lynagh will be a big talking point and not a call that everyone will agree with, although it does go to show the competition and level of talent on offer this season.
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Among the position groups where England could be harder pressed this season are the centres and the props. As mentioned earlier, Redpath and Lawrence have both graduated from the under-20s and the only new face brought in has been Max Ojomoh. The Bath midfielder has plenty of ability and will bring hard-running, dynamism and a robust physical presence to the group, though his sole inclusion does hint that England will potentially also look to use a fly-half at inside centre, as Ojomoh and Connor Doherty will not be able to carry the burden on their own.
Some of the centres who have not initially been named in the EPS are Lennox Anyanwu, Chidera Obonna, Isaac Marsh and Phil Cokanasiga, so there are gifted options there should England decide to go down a more centre-centric midfield.
As for the props, their position is not highlighted due to a lack of talent, simply due to a lack of experience. Loosehead Sam Crean is a second-year player, although he was not involved in the under-20s last year, while James Whitcombe, Harvey Beaton and Luke Green are all in their first years of professional rugby.
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In the front row, that arguably makes a bigger difference than it does at any other position. They will come up against players at times this year that have a physical edge over them and that will test them. That could be perfect for their developments in the longer term, although it’s worth noting that England may not have everything go their way up front over the next six months.
Some other interesting omissions through the squad include hooker Sam Riley (Harlequins), lock Chunya Munga (London Irish), back rows Izaiha Moore-Aiono and Fin Rossiter (both London Irish), wings Joe Browning (Leicester) and Jack Bates (Bristol Bears), and utility back Harry Barlow (Harlequins), with Barlow now potentially set to join up with Wales.
It’s always a large talent pool to pick from and there are always tough decisions to be made, although this season seems to boast more contentious calls than ever before. Perhaps that is due to a larger pool of international age-grade-calibre players this year or potentially just a very distinct playing style that the coaching staff is looking to implement over the coming months.
The group get their under-20s Six Nations campaign underway against France in Grenoble on February 1. With Les Bleus’ age-grade side arguably having surpassed England as the premier pathway in world rugby over the last couple of seasons, it should be a compelling test of this new group.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Totally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
1 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
5 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
36 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
36 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to commentsThis is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?
35 Go to commentsWow, didn’t realise there was such apathy to URC in SA, or by Champions Cup teams. Just read Nick’s article on Crusaders, are Sharks a similar circumstance? I think SA rugby has been far more balanced than NZs, no?
4 Go to commentsBut here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.
36 Go to commentsIt could be coincidental or prescient that the All Blacks most dominant period under Steve Hansen was when the Crusaders had their least successful period under Todd Blackadder and then the positions reversed when Razor took over the Crusaders.
36 Go to commentsDefinitely sound read everybodyexpects immediate results these days, I don't think any team would travel well at all having lost three of the most important game changers in the game,compiled with the massive injury list they are now carrying, good to see a different more in depth perspective of a coaches history.
3 Go to commentsSinckler is a really big loss for English rugby.
2 Go to commentsThanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause
36 Go to commentsNo way. If you are trying to picture New Zealand rugby with an All Blacks mindset, there have been two factors instrumental to the decline of NZ rugby to date. Those are the horror that the Blues have become and, probably more so, the fixture that the Crusaders became. I don’t think it was healthy to have one team so dominant for so long, both for lack of proper representation of players from outside that environment and on the over reliance on players from within it. If you are another international side, like Ireland for example, sure. You can copy paste something succinct from one level to the next and experience a huge increase in standards, but ultimately you will not be maximizing it, which is what you need to perform to the level the ABs do. Added to that is the apathy that develops in the whole game as a result of one sides dominance. NZ, Super, and Championship rugby should all experience a boom as a result of things balancing out. That said, there is a lot of bad news happening in NZ rugby recently, and I’m not sure the game can be handled well enough here to postpone the always-there feeling of inevitable decline of rugby.
36 Go to comments