England’s apprentice ready to become Toulon’s master
BURGEONING Bath back row Zach Mercer intends to channel the experience from his month-long stint as a Red Rose ‘apprentice’ into helping his side quell Toulon’s array of galacticos when they go toe-to-toe with the Top 14 giants in France on Saturday.
Mercer missed out on a first cap against Samoa last week, with Exeter bolter Sam Simmons selected at No.8 instead, but he intends to put his lessons to good use against the best and prove he is Test ready. Mercer, 20, told The
Rugby Paper: “Sam’s a top bloke and a really good player so I’m not disappointed; I’ve still got plenty of time. I was chuffed to be in the squad and I’ve learned a lot from that environment.
“I didn’t actually know I’d been named, I only found out on twitter, so it was a proud moment for me and my family and it felt pretty surreal.
“The reason I got there is because of the players and coaches here at Bath, who’ve given me the confidence and helped out when I’ve needed. I’ve come back to Bath a more developed rugby player, especially mentally where I learnt a lot about myself and how I can push myself much more. I’m like a sponge soaking everything up at the moment and there’s a lot more to come.
“It was a pretty physical camp. The training was tough but very worthwhile, so I feel I’ve come back to Bath now in a much better state.”
Bath travel to Stade Mayol knowing back-toback wins will deliver a Champions Cup knock-out blow to the three-time former winners, but first they must face down back row legends Samu Manoa, Mamuka Gorgodze and Juan Fernandez Lobbe.
Mercer believes the French team should be worried, though, explaining: “Everyone knows the calibre of players Toulon have, but to go to Stade Mayol will be like a dream come true for me.
“We know the challenge and we’ve got a hard couple of weeks ahead, but you want to play rugby against the best and we’re looking forward to it.
“You learn a lot from these trips but if you look at our back row at Bath – Sam Underhill, Toby Faletau, Francois Louw, Matt Garvey, Paul Grant, Josh Bayliss and myself – we feel we can match them and come up with the answers.
“You can talk about fear, but for us it’s more about excitement going there and, having put ourselves in a good position in the Champions Cup with wins over Benetton and Scarlets, we want to keep pushing on and not let our standards slip.”
With Underhill having starred for England last month and Toby Faletau back from Wales duty, Mercer’s back row competition will become fiercer.
But the former England U20s star remains unfazed, knowing his versatility in being able to play right across the back row will boost his chances.
He said: “Toby’s worldclass and with Francois back the competition is only going to get bigger.
“For me that’s a massive positive because it means big numbers in training and everyone's pushing hard and fighting for the shirt. I’ll relish that and the club is definitely in a better place for it.
“I’ll play anywhere to get a game. Whether it’s six, seven or eight it isn’t any different for me, just to get the Bath shirt on at the weekend is an honour.”
England boss Eddie Jones claims to know 22 or 23 of the 31 men he will take to World Cup 2019, which leaves up to nine spots up for grabs.
Effervescent Mercer added: “Eddie said that but it can change at any point; all it takes is one good performance and you put your hand up.
“I know there’s a lot of hard work to go in over the next two years, but the end result could be a World Cup place. Hopefully, I’ll get into this Bath team regularly and when I get my opportunities I’ll be looking to put myself in that frame.”