More to come from Marchant with mentor Evans on board
FLYING midfielder Joe Marchant hopes the influential part he is playing in an improving Harlequins attack can thrust him back into England contention.
Marchant had been set to tour Argentina in June before a toe injury intervened and now finds himself back down the Red Rose pecking order, with Jonathan Joseph, Elliot Daly and Exeter’s in-form Henry Slade battling for the outside-centre slot.
However, Premiership ever-present Marchant has quietly been going about the business of inspiring a Harlequins offensive machine that has notched 20 tries in six league games.
The 21-year-old is now desperate for a crack in the white jersey, telling TRP: “It was really frustrating with that injury happening in the last game of last season, but I came back refreshed and am looking to get back in that England mix.
“I got into the August training camp but missed out on the one in Oxford last month, so Eddie Jones likes to keep people guessing – but I know what I’ve got to do and if everything continues to go well for me at Quins, hopefully my name will pop up again.
“I’m loving the opportunities I’m getting at Quins. I’ve been working as hard as I can and although I’ve got so much more to learn, hopefully I’m showing what I can do.”
Marchant added: “Eddie wants me to build on what I’m doing. I like to get my hands on the ball and take people on and I’m getting opportunities to do that.
“The hardest thing at times is to work yourself into good positions to be able to influence the game, but if I can continue finding space, I’m confident there’s plenty more to come.”
Harlequins have averaged a healthy 57 per cent territorial dominance in the Premiership to date and Marchant is beginning to benefit from the influence of former playmaker Nick Evans, who is now making his presence felt as the club’s attack coach.
Marchant explained: “Nick’s been really good for us. He goes through all my games and he’s such a knowledgeable guy that all of us are trying to take as much from him as we can.
“We loved him when he was a player so it’s great to have someone like that you can relate to in training and we’re really beginning to nail down what works and what doesn’t work.
“For me personally, he’s been hugely influential so far. He’s helped me work on my kicking game – relieving options and offensive kicks – and he wants me on the ball as much as possible because that’s when we’re most effective as a team. It’s about my role in ensuring the team stays connected.”
Marchant concedes that if Harlequins are to make the top four and mount a serious Champions Cup challenge, they must become even more clinical.
He added: “We showed against Sale what we could do and once we start doing that consistently we’ll be hard to beat. We’re creating opportunities and dominating territory, so we just need to be more ruthless.
“It’s my first year in the Champions Cup and we’ll go to Wasps this week looking to make a statement there. We feel we’ve got a squad that can challenge on both fronts and we’re also determined to make that Premiership top four.”