Christian eager to prove Jones wrong over England snub
CHRISTIAN Wade is itching to prove Eddie Jones wrong over his omission from England’s squad to tour Argentina.
Wasps boss Dai Young has expressed frustration that stars such as Wade were overlooked by England but national coach Jones welcomed that reaction in terms of building greater depth among his selection options.
Wade struck a record 17 tries as Wasps topped the Aviva Premiership’s regular-season table but his wait to add to his solitary cap since his 2013 debut rumbles on.
Head coach Jones wants his disappointed England hopefuls busting a gut and redoubling their efforts to force him into a rethink – and Wade is ready to face down that challenge.
“I’m definitely ready to meet that challenge from Eddie and the England coaches,” Wade said.
“It’s never been an easy ride for me with my size. People have always said ‘you’re too small for this, you’re too small for that’, but I’ve still achieved what I have.
“And I don’t plan on stopping. I’m just going to keep improving and keep on bettering myself.”
While Wade naturally would back himself for an England call after a stellar campaign he admitted understanding Jones’ decision.
The 26-year-old hailed superstar team-mates Kurtley Beale and Willie le Roux for helping him hone his attacking craft, while also pinpointing further development.
Wasps host Leicester in today’s Premiership semi-final, with the Ricoh Arena likely to sell out, leaving Wade hoping the Coventry men can gel all their backline talents once again.
“To an extent I can see where Eddie is coming from,” said Wade.
“There’s a finite number of places in the squad and everyone has different opinions.
“If someone’s playing well in the shirt it’s hard to dislodge them too. So it’s understandable.
“My main goal is to just improve myself regardless of selection anyway.
“I’m not really going to rest on just scoring tries.
“I’m going to become the best player I can be for my club, they’re the team that’s brought me into the sport.
“I feel I’ve stepped it up another level this year, I’m in a great place at the moment.
“It would have been great to go on tour but ultimately I’m happy. And I’m ready to go again next year.
“For me as a winger it’s my job to score tries and to create them too.
“So to finish as top try scorer it’s great for the team. We’ve been great in attack with our big guns and playmakers but we want to keep improving.
“With Kurtley and Willie it’s really improved my running lines and understanding of how to break down a defence.
“It’s paying attention to detail working with these guys and it’s really helped me a lot. It’s small things that make a massive difference.
“We know we’ll be in for a seriously tough match against Leicester, but hopefully the Ricoh will be sold out. The fans have been absolutely brilliant with us there, and it’s a testing atmosphere for visiting teams.”