You think I have peaked? No chance, insists fired-up North
With Jonny May being hailed in various enthusiastic quarters as “the best wing in the world”, George North is keen to remind observers that despite having 80 Wales caps, he is only 26 and still has so much to offer. Indeed, in the build-up to the Guinness Six Nations match against England on Saturday, the wing is eager to stress that we have yet to see the best of him.
Since bursting on to the scene as a teenager, North has compiled an impressive CV, with two Lions tours, 38 international tries and a reputation as one the game’s great finishers. In recent years, however, his undoubted star power has been perceived to be waning, with injury concerns and lacklustre displays making many wonder if at such a young age his pomp could already have passed.
But following his latest performance, a second half against France in which he kept Wales’s winning run intact with two tries, North is having none of it.
When asked by The Daily Telegraph if he believes he has peaked, North was indignant. “Do you think I’ve peaked? Very kind,” he said. “Hopefully I haven’t. I think there is plenty more left to go, bits I can work on in my game to take it to the next level. There is more to give.
“As the game develops I will need to change. If you look at the first few rounds of this Six Nations and see the physicality and the speed of the game that’s where, come World Cup time, the game is going to go forwards again. I hope I can keep up with it and I think there is certainly more to give to get to there.”
North seemed equally perturbed by queries about his Jekyll-andhyde display at the Stade de France. He was culpable for a home score in the opening half, during which he generally summed up the Welsh mediocrity, but he made up for it later. North was not impressed by being quizzed whether his confidence was resurrected.
“You guys are charming today. Flipping heck,” North said. “Take the rope away, boys! Where I am now, I’m in a good place. As Warren [Gatland, the coach] says, winning is a habit, ugly or pretty you still have to win wherever you go. I am feeling pretty good, training well, training hard.”
He did not appear in Rome two weeks ago, with Gatland keeping the powder of his main weapon dry. North is aware he will be judged against England’s May and it would be no surprise to see a tight match edged by whichever of these powerhouse fliers comes out on top.
“Jonny’s been playing very well,” North said. “The way that England play has certainly suited his game – that very front-foot, gain-line dominant, shifting the ball into space and kicking is a huge thing for them.
“When you have got gas like that you can exploit it, and it’s certainly working for them. It’s something that’s a big part of their game at the moment.”
North is expecting to see high balls heading in his direction, adding: “For them it will probably be a case of ‘if it’s not broke, don’t fix it’.”
Yet with Wales looking to extend their winning run to a record 12 matches and North standing only three tries off Shane Williams’s Six Nations mark of 22, there is so much to play for.
“For us it is more than recordhunting now,” North said. “We have been training really hard – I think my legs fell off at one point last week – and the boys know what’s at stake.”
Gatland will name his team today, with Gareth Anscombe expected to be named at fly-half over Dan Biggar, who has only just returned to training.
For North the game cannot come soon enough. “Both teams are two from two and it’s the history, the tradition. It’ll be one of those ‘I was there’ occasions.”