Mccall denies that Itoje is overworked by Saracens
Mark Mccall, the Saracens director of rugby, launched a firm defence of Maro Itoje’s form in the wake of criticism from World Cup-winning coach Sir Clive Woodward.
Woodward told BBC radio’s Sportsweek programme that the 23-year-old lock had looked “out on his feet” during a Natwest Six Nations campaign in which England lost three matches on the way to a fifth-place finish.
However, Mccall rejected that view and insisted that his player’s workload following last summer’s British and Irish Lions tour, eased by a five-week lay-off over new year with a fractured jaw, has been no heavier than anticipated.
Itoje has racked up 875 minutes for Saracens alongside his seven England appearances this season, which have included five consecutive Six Nations starts.
“There are things that have been written about certain players that aren’t all that accurate and aren’t really based on any data,” Mccall said. “Maro seems to be the one who has been highlighted as ‘out on his feet’ – that’s the quote I’ve seen.
“But Maro’s playing record over the past 20 weeks is 10 games played, so that’s 10 weekends when he hasn’t played. Maro’s match minutes this year are lower than Owen’s [Farrell], who is playing well. I thought he was fantastic against France and did well against Ireland.” Farrell has played 1,084 minutes for Saracens this season, while Mako Vunipola has accumulated 1,002. These figures are vastly higher in comparison with those amassed by Ireland’s Lions for their respective provinces.
Even so, Mccall explained that Saracens’ “excellent performance team” had worked closely in harness with Eddie Jones and England’s conditioning staff to monitor workloads and determine who would tour South Africa this summer. Mccall refused to lay the blame for England’s slump on the club system. “[Central contracts] work in Ireland,” he added. “The English system is different. The players belong to the clubs, they’re paid by the clubs. Nobody was asking these questions in the past two years when England won the Grand Slam and won the Six Nations.”
Ahead of this weekend’s Aviva Premiership meeting with Harlequins at London Stadium, Mccall also admitted that Billy Vunipola was in a “race against time” to recover from a fractured forearm for Saracens’ Champions Cup quarter-final against Leinster on April 1.
“It’s a little bit uncertain,” Mccall said. “Billy is in a race against time to be ready for the quarter-final. We’ll make a call on what the surgeon says. If the arm isn’t right to play then we won’t risk him.”