England flanker promises to learn from Dublin mistakes
JAMES Haskell is not one to dwell on the past but he will be able to have a second bite at the cherry in Dublin next week and he is determined to make it count this time.
Last week Haskell and England missed out on consecutive Grand Slams with defeat to Ireland but the big flanker will return to the Aviva stadium on club duties on Saturday as Wasps take on Leinster in the Champions Cup quarter-finals.
Winning big games is what makes good sides great and Haskell is hoping Wasps have learnt from last season where they came up short in the semi-finals of both the Champions Cup and the Premiership.
“Going back to the Aviva so soon is good for me,” he told The Rugby Paper. “Any second bite at the cherry is great because you don’t often get one.
“We can’t replay the Six Nations game unfortunately but there’ll be many Irish guys swapping their green shirt for a blue one. I’m pretty sure I’ve lost more games than I’ve won at the Aviva so it’d be good to bury some demons.
“It’s really important for us to kick on, go there and perform to get a result. We don’t want all the hard work we’ve put in in the Premiership to fall by the way side.
“I’d like to win some silverware with my club again. I was spoilt early on in my career but we haven’t done that in a while. Winning and lifting trophies is what matters in rugby. We fell short last year and we’ve learnt from it.
“It takes a special team to go on and win silverware. I spoke to Billy Vunipola after the England game last week and he said the Saracens boys learn a lot from their defeats.
“You tend to learn more from failure than successes so hopefully we can do the same.” While Haskell concedes last week’s defeat was frustrating, he is quick to look at the positives as England continue their journey towards the 2019 World Cup having lost only one of their previous 18 games.
Being the oldest player in Eddie Jones’ squad at 31, 75-times capped Haskell has earmarked the tournament in Japan as his final swan-song with the Red Rose on his chest.
He said: “Last week was frustrating because we didn’t fire any shots at Ireland. But you have to accept defeat as a professional rugby players and to be honest I’d have laughed in your face at the start of last year if you told me we were going to win two consecutive Six Nations including one Grand Slam.
“We achieved some really good things even if it’s disappointing we fell short in the end. The older players in the squad know how rare opportunities like that are.
“It slipped through our fingers but we still won back to back Six Nations and we’re on a journey to do something bigger.
“The squad will be different in Argentina because some of us will be going to New Zealand with the Lions but there are a lot players just outside the squad raring to go.
“Argentina is a tough place to play rugby and I’d love to go there. I’m not thinking about the Lions because there are so many things out of your control in terms of selection it’s not really worth it.
“Going to the next World Cup is my target. In my mind that’s where I’d like to get to in terms of my England career but I think the team will be a lot different in two years from what it is now. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to wear the shirt again.”