>> Robson:
My challenge to Youngs and Care
DAN Robson has no caps, and, unlike England scrumhalf incumbents Ben Youngs and Danny Care he has no Grand Slam or Aussie clean-sweep to his name. However, the Wasps No.9 feels he has served his apprenticeship, and is ready to take the step up to international level.
His confidence is built on all the pillars of great scrum-half skills – rather than some of them – and those master-craftsman accomplishments underpin my belief that Robson has an edge over his illustrious rivals that should see him emerge as England’s scrum-half going into the 2019 World Cup.
The gold currency Robson holds is that for the past year he has been consistently the best scrum-half in the Premiership. England coach Eddie Jones has made it clear that high-end consistency at club level is crucial, yet it has often been an elusive commodity where Youngs and Care are concerned, with serious ups and downs for their clubs this season a case in point. The latest dips came for Youngs in Leicester’s shellacking at Glasgow last weekend, and for Care when Harlequins were dismantled recently by Wasps at the Ricoh.
By contrast, Robson has been in commanding form virtually every time he has taken the field for Wasps since joining them from Gloucester just over a year ago, and he was similarly impressive for the Saxons in their wins over South Africa ‘A’ during the summer. This included a solo try as spectacular as those that helped to establish Youngs and Care as regulars at senior level, with Robson leaving three Springbok defenders bamboozled by his changes of pace and direction.
Having progressed from the England U20s to Gloucester, where he understudied Greig Laidlaw, and Jimmy Cowan before that, and then making the bold decision to join Wasps with Joe Simpson already established, the 24-year-old Robson lacks neither resolve nor confidence.
“I’ve played a lot of rugby, and what’s been great about coming to Wasps has been getting games on the bounce on a regular basis. I struggled to get that at Gloucester. I like to think that I’m no longer the apprentice.” Ask him if now he wants to be the master, and Robson responds: “You could say that.”
Even so he says that he and the more experienced Simpson have a good rapport based on constructive criticism of each other: “We are here working everyday as scrum-halves, and we work closely together, so it would be pretty tough if we weren’t friends as well as rivals.”
Yet it was stepping out of Laidlaw’s shadow into the place vacated by the injured Simpson that put Robson in the footlights, and he has flourished ever since. Having helped Wasps reach the semi-finals in last season’s European Cup and Premiership, he was rewarded when he was included in the 45-man EPS announced at the end of last month.
This allowed him to rub shoulders again with his England U20 team-mates Owen Farrell and George Ford, and he was also in the 37 for the Brighton training camp, ensuring that he is up to speed with England’s Autumn series strategy.
Jones has said that he will make a big push to expand England’s attacking horizons in the two years before the World Cup in Japan, but it is hard to believe that he will not start doing the spadework straightaway.
Some might call it sacrilege to consider shaking-up the scrumhalf pecking order when you have two well-established players with over 60 caps each, neither of whom will be greybeards in 2019 (Youngs 29, Care 31).
However, while the England incumbents are both dangerous attacking runners when they are at the top of their game, what makes Robson such a genuine threat to the Youngs-Care duopoly is that he has the ability to keep the opposition guessing in a way they do not.
The merits of Ben Youngs’ game are well known, with his eye for a gap and acceleration a strength in attack, a solid box-kick, and improved cover-tackling in defence. Yet, there are debits, especially around a service which is often too slow to unsettle the best defences.
A lot of Youngs’ passing from the base involves a two or three step launch, which are also often the preamble to the George Gregan-style sidewinder runs he makes from the base. These sometimes pay off with Youngs running laterally before finding a gap himself, or looking for a runner to take a line and then putting him through. But they can also result in delays which result in a backline being cramped for time and space. Care is more of a sniper, a sharp mover capable of picking off defenders on the fringes and making blistering breaks. However, although his passing is sound his kicking from hand is erratic, and his orientation is more that of an all-action strike runner than a tactician. Robson’s attraction is that he can do what Youngs and Care do, but also has other strings to his bow which make him more unpredictable. He will hold defenders by taking a lateral line before making his move like Youngs, and also has the guile to wrong-foot defenders like Care, and the pace to leave them for dead.
What makes Robson exceptional is that his speed over the ground is matched by the speed of his pass. The Wasps scrum-half has great balance, and this is reflected in a nimbleness and economy of movement around the breakdown, and at line-outs or scrums, that enable him to whip the ball away in a split-second – and he does so with length as well as accuracy.
On top of that, Robson’s kicking arsenal covers all contingencies, and it is the variety, precision and range of it that puts him in a different bracket to Youngs and Care. He keeps the opposition under fire, whether it is putting his own back three in the game with contestable box-kicks, gaining yardage with raking kicks to the corner, or creating tries with chip-and-chase grubbers.
Robson says that he rates New Zealand’s Aaron Smith as the most complete scrum-half in the game, despite his off-field difficulties. “It helps him being in that All Black side, but his speed around the breakdown and his all-round kicking game, and ability to know when to apply pressure in attack – and relieve it in defence – makes him stand out.” Ask him for his view on the greatest scrum-halves historically and he says he found England’s Matt Dawson and Australia’s Gregan hard to seperate. “For me, growing up, they were the pinnacle. They were both at the top of their game and it was special when they played again each other in that period around 2003."
But it’s back to the present for Robson and Wasps today face Toulouse at the State Ernest Wallon, with their French hosts smarting after losing to Connacht, and looking to bring the English side down to earth after their record 82-14 rout of Zebra.
“I’ve not played therefore, but I’m really looking forward to it - it’ll be hostile, but new,” Robson says. “It’s a very important tourna-
“What makes Robson exceptional is that his speed over the ground is matched by the speed of his pass."
ment to us. You work so hard all season to get into it that you don’t want to waste the opportunity when it comes.”
Robson reveals he will not be shy about snapping at the heels of the Wasps pack. “It’s still important to have a 9 who is bossing – keeping them focused, and getting them riled-up if necessary. Toulouse have a massive pack which will be a big test for our boys, but we’re confident they will front-up. However, it’s inevitable that we will be on the back foot some of the time against a team of that calibre. But what Toulouse have to remember is that we’ve got world-class backs, and all they need is a half a chance...”
Among the most adept at creating and taking those half-chances is his new half-back partner Danny Cipriani. Robson says they are working well together in a backline that has been scoring tries for fun, with the 12 against Zebre the latest haul.
“It’s been pretty good, and it was also useful getting a couple of games with Danny in the Saxons in South Africa as a trial run. He’s come in with a lot of fresh ideas, and he’s a bit of a maverick so he keeps people guessing. Also, he and Jimmy Gopperth have worked well together, and Jimmy moving to 12 has shored-up the backline. It’s exciting.”
Ask Robson if he feels a heavier weight of responsibility for getting Wasps moving with guys of the talent of Cipriani, Gopperth, Kyle Eastmond, Elliot Daly and Christian Wade outside him, and he is pragmatic rather than pressured.
“It goes back to the forwards. If they get it going in the right direction then you can release those players. The backs are vocal – Elliot speaks a lot, so do the rest. But it is mainly clear and accurate messages rather than white noise.”
Robson says the part of the game that he enjoys most is when he gets quick ball. “At Wasps when we get the ball in our backs’ hands, and our forwards are also playing rugby, it’s hard to beat. Front-foot ball makes the decision-time quicker, and it is then that you can really click as a team.”
He adds: “We do a lot of work on fitness, because with the (fast) game we want to play it’s essential – and we train to play for 80 minutes at full tilt every Saturday. Sometimes it’s massively tough, and there are instances at halftime when it’s a real lung-burner. You only get brief rests, so it is all about how quickly you can recover.”
He says slow ball makes different demands. “On those days when it doesn’t come together there is a big responsibility on you as a scrum-half to control it and work out ways to get back in the game.”
So, if your pack is getting a pasting can you still make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear? Robson responds: “It depends on the game. You feel your way, but it is important to stick with your structure and then start to use your instincts. You want to get your forwards in the right part of the field, so you kick for territory and try to get them in the game.”
Whether it arrives fast or slow, Robson shown he has the measure of what’s required. It has made him a linchpin of a rapidlyimproving Wasps side that is primed to challenge again for the big club prizes – and keep him on the fast-track towards the 2019 World Cup.