THE GOLDEN BOY WHO LOST HIS SPARKLE
Quins wonderkid Marcus now fighting to return to the form which earned England call
WHEN Marcus Smith went head-to-head with Danny Cipriani a year ago he won himself a place in the England squad.
At Kingsholm today he will do well to get on the pitch for their rematch.
Smith is the golden boy who has lost some of his shine. Dropped by his country, benched by his club.
He has hit the first speedbump of his career in a Harlequins team which has made a mess of 2018. The best-paid teenager in rugby is earning his corn the hard way.
“The key for me is to stay positive,” said the fly-half, whose place goes to James Lang.
“After last season people know what I can offer, but I’ve got to understand there are going to be ups and downs. It’s happened so fast for me, playing at this level.
“But I need to keep evolving my game and stay bright.
“Body language is important. A team looks to its fly-half for confidence, so remaining positive when things aren’t going well is a big thing for me.”
It is easy to forget Smith is 19. In the year since he left school he has steered England to a Junior World Cup final and been Quins’ players’ player of the season.
He still lives at home with his family, still plays Xbox with his brothers before bed.
But he is having to grow up quickly.
“I’m trying to improve myself, trying to improve the team,” he said. “I watch the opposition, review training sessions, talk to the coaches. When I get home at night I try to take my mind off things a little but, especially recently, I’ve been focused on rugby.”
Perched on his dad’s lap Smith watched Jonny Wilkinson win England the 2003 World Cup – and is influenced to this day by his idol’s work ethic.
“There’s this quote mum always uses: ‘Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard enough’,” he said. “So for me, work-rate needs to come first.” Nick Evans, the former All Black fly-half who coaches Smith, testifies to his commitment and reckons a tough year will pay dividends in the long term. “I know from experience that when things aren’t going well everyone looks at the No.10 for answers,” said Evans. “Marcus reacted like any good 10 – he tried to do everything himself. “He has a lot of experience to gain around play-calling, game-management and defence. But he’s a great kid, he wants to learn and he will – because he’s a winner.”