Saints duo starting to catch the eye
NORTHAMPTON star Rob Horne has vowed to make it his business to ensure Saints teammates Harry Mallinder and Piers Francis break into the England team.
Saints’ poor season has made it hard for players to shine, but Francis and fellow England prospect Mallinder are starting to show why Eddie Jones rates them.
Former Wallaby centre Horne, below, told The
Rugby Paper: “Injuries have made it hard to get our combinations going but in recent weeks we’ve seen Piers Francis can definitely play the game. It’s handy to play alongside someone so tuned into rugby.
“You hope he’ll go on and play again for England now and from my point of view I just want to see guys playing well and pushing on to higher honours.
“I want to be part of their journey. I see it as my responsibility, and I want to see Piers and many other Saints players pulling on that England jersey.”
Horne added: “Harry Mallinder’s a phenomenal talent who has a huge future ahead of him. He’s a big lad who’s got some good movement about him and anything’s possible when he’s on the field.
“Like Piers, Harry’s already around that England set-up and hopefully he’ll get an opportunity on the summer tour of South Africa.”
Horne has hit top form alongside Luther Burrell – a powerful centre partnership that appears to have a solid future as Northampton rebuild.
Horne, 28, said: “At the start of the season we enjoyed that combination but then injuries got in the way and prevented us playing together as much as we’d have liked, but it’s coming together now. “Luther has that rare combination of size and ability and, along with the assets I bring defensively and in breaking the line, the partnership’s looking good.” Despite Northampton’s disappointing season, former Waratahs star Horne insists he has no regrets over his move to England. “None at all,” he added, “I’ve never seen snow before but I’m embracing the experiences. “The Premiership is becoming the top competition in Europe now and that’s translating into the standard of player we see.”