Ali Hepher says England centre can play the Greenwood role
HENRY Slade’s finelyhoned defensive qualities allied to a superb all-round skillset have been likened to those of England great Will Greenwood by his club coach Ali Hepher.
In the absence of Bath’s Jonathan Joseph, Slade has grabbed the opportunity to make the No.13 jersey his own, starting eight of England’s last nine Tests there to have the chance to emulate Greenwood and go on to World Cup glory.
Slade’s burgeoning confidence in one of rugby’s most difficult positions comes as no surprise to Hepher, who has overseen the 25-year-old’s transition from budding fly-half into a player who is dovetailing perfectly in Eddie Jones’ devastating Six Nations back-line.
Exeter head coach Hepher told The Rugby
Paper: “It’s great to see Sladey settling in and looking comfortable at international level. I always knew that if he was given the time and the chances he’d flourish because his skill and attitude towards the game is fantastic.
“He’s got a bit of the Will Greenwood about him – rangy, with that ability to make decisions.
“What you get with Sladey are fantastic individual attributes. His ability on the ball is one thing, his defensive reads are impressive and he’s not shy of a yard or two of pace, which he’s shown over the last couple of weeks. He’s a rounded player who can do most things.”
Like a fine wine, Slade’s maturing process has taken time. After steering the England U20s to a first Junior World Cup success in 2013 wearing No.10, he found his path to Exeter’s first team blocked by Gareth Steenson, thus prompting a rethink.
There has also been the human aspect of allowing the naturally reserved lad from Plymouth to mature to a point where he now has the confidence to dominate teams.
Hepher explained: “That’s why it’s taken a little bit of time. Some guys are probably ready to jump into whatever environment they’re thrust into at 19 or 20 but the majority are not like that.
“You have seen Sladey’s confidence building on the club scene where he’s really started to dominate in the Premiership over the last couple of years, which is the natural progression you want.
“You want guys to dictate and dominate at club level and when they do that, the next step is to try and establish yourself at international level and dominate there as well.
“I spoke to Henry about that before he went away with England in the autumn, saying he was ready to take that next step on the international scene, and we’re seeing that now.”
On Slade’s switch from fly-half, former Saints 10 Hepher added: “We’ve always been open-minded over Sladey’s position and he can still play ten to a very high level, but the biggest thing is his defensive role at 13 because he’s a superb reader of the game in that position, which you have to be.
“We had problems in the past with people saying he needed to be playing at 12, so he wore that shirt for a while but did exactly the same by defending at 13. It’s one of the trickiest posi“The tions to defend but he does it superbly and can still play 12 depending on what’s happening.
“At Exeter we exposed him to the 13 jersey outside Sam Hill or Ian Whitten and they complemented each other well, so it’s the same for him now alongside Manu Tuilagi. balance of that England backline is very good. You’ve got ball-carriers in there and pace, then you’ve got decisionmakers like Sladey and Elliot Daly. With Manu and the forwards punching holes and Jonny May’s pace, it’s a very potent mix.”