Ellis Genge: England’s rough diamond
SIX NATIONS RUGBY
EDDIE JONES has often depicted Ellis Genge as an emerging rugby role model and he has been heralded as a ‘Robin Hood’ figure following his Calcutta Cup- winning exploits for England at Murrayfield.
The Leicester prop scored the try which propelled his side to victory over Scotland. Then he spoke in typically forthright manner, delivering a riposte to critics of England and those who condemned team-mate Lewis Ludlam for firedup pre-match rhetoric.
Genge is from the tough Knowle West area of Bristol and Jones sees him as a beacon of hope for aspiring players from working-class areas, in a country where rugby has often been regarded as a sport played by a privileged minority.
Dylan Hartley was England captain when Genge made his Test debut in 2016 and last night he said: ‘There is an air of Robin Hood about him — he’s got a strong message in his story that shows English rugby players can come from any background. I love the Ellis that I see and hear, I just hope that’s not drummed out of him over time, because I know the only headlines that coaches like are ones about rugby.’
Richard Cockerill, who brought the 24-year-old from his hometown club to the East Midlands in 2016, told
Sportsmail yesterday: ‘In my era, it was about public schoolboys and the RFU old- school-tie brigade. Guys like myself, Martin Johnson, Graeme Rowntree and Darren Garforth broke that mould. Gengey is doing that again. He’s a working-class fella from a down-to-earth background who is doing well for himself and should be proud of where he’s come from — which he is.
‘Kids from a working- class background now watch England and think, “Well, Ellis Genge is a bit of a rough-arsed kid, he’s not come from money or gone to a private school, but he’s now one of the world’s best players”.
‘That’s a really good message to send to kids who come from a less wealthy background. They can see that they can get on in the game, get to the top level and earn a lot of money. That’s great for the sport.’
Jones has spoken of Genge as one of his ‘rough diamonds’ and Cockerill used the same phrase yesterday, adding: ‘When he arrived at Leicester, Gengey was a kid who was always going to get himself in trouble. He has that bit of a destructive gene in his brain. But I loved the raw aggression and just tried to channel it.
‘Because I understood him and had empathy with him, he then toed the line, to a point. He was always a bit mad and he was always going to give a daft penalty away, or get involved with a bit of fisticuffs in training, but that was quite normal at Leicester!
‘One morning, we were going into a team meeting and Gengey was walking in with his normal strut. So I just said, “All right Gengey, do you want a fight?”. What I wanted was for him to say yes, then I’d point him at Richard
Blaze, our forwards coach at the time who was 6ft 8in and 20 stone. But he just looked at me and said, “But who’s going to take the session?!”.
‘All the boys p***ed themselves and I just said, “OK, fair enough”. I wouldn’t fight Gengey if you paid me double!’
Andy Robinson was his coach at Bristol and came to realise Genge needed to be challenged by other tough characters, away from his local comfort zone.
‘One of the reasons I released him was that I felt he needed to go somewhere where he wasn’t the kingpin,’ he told Sportsmail. ‘He was kingpin at Bristol at the time — there was no one who was going to stand up to him among the players.
‘Leicester was the right club for him. It was a place with a tough culture. I’ve watched how he has developed and it’s good to see he runs into space every now and again now! He loves the confrontation — he wants to run over you and he has the ability to do that.’
Robinson can also appreciate Genge’s role-model status too, adding: ‘It is really important to have that, for everyone in the game. It shows there are opportunities for everyone to succeed in the game. I think you have to be bright though — and Ellis is bright.’
Genge has become a role model beyond the boundaries of his sport. He has spoken about living with dyspraxia, a developmental co-ordination disorder.
Eleanor Howes, chief executive of the national Dyspraxia Foundation said: ‘We contacted Ellis when we heard him talk about his dyspraxia. There are so many parents who say to us, “This is wonderful. My son is so pleased. He wants to play rugby and now he knows he can”.
‘Ellis had a difficult time growing up with it. He told me about how he would bump into doors and couldn’t tie his shoelaces. He says he still has trouble going through doorways.
‘People who have dyspraxia often avoid PE, because it affects hand-eye co-ordination. But Ellis persevered because that is what he wanted to do, and he made a success of it. And he is such a nice guy.’
Genge is having a powerful and positive impact, with words and deeds, for Leicester and England — and far beyond.