Kruis: I can still be a Lionheart!
He hopes Japan move won’t rule him out
Lock George kruis has confirmed he is moving to Japan later this year but refuses to call time on his international career with England and the Lions. kruis, 30, has signed a oneyear deal, with an option for another year, with Panasonic Wild knights based in ota city, near Tokyo, and will head there from Saracens in November. The Japanese Top League is scheduled to finish in May, technically leaving kruis free for next summer’s Lions tour to South Africa. kruis played one Test for the Lions in New Zealand in 2017 when Warren Gatland was head coach and has already been in touch with the former Wales boss, who will be in charge again against the world champions. kruis said: ‘I have spoken with him and let him know that I would love to be involved but it depends like anything on selection. I want him to know I would love to go and, by going to Japan, I don’t see that as counting myself out. It will all be done on selection.
‘I thoroughly enjoyed it last time and it is something I would love to be a part of.
‘I am massively still interested in international honours and Lions honours. For me, this is definitely not an international retirement. It is a chance for me to properly explore something that has been itching me for a very long time.’
England head coach Eddie Jones cannot pick players from outside the Premiership, so kruis’s temporary exile rules him out of contention for the immediate future. But the second row — a Saracen since he was 18 — has still kept Jones informed.
He added: ‘This is something I have been speaking to him about for a number of years and the coaches at Saracens.
‘This is massively intriguing for me and I like to keep people in the loop along the way.
‘our conversations have gone well. He is a brilliant coach and he is nice and understanding. I am only 30, so I would like to think there is plenty left in the legs and this is definitely not an England retirement.
‘It is just an opportunity to better myself for a season.’
Jones said: ‘We had some discussions about his club rugby and I think this offers him the opportunity for a different rugby and cultural experience.
‘It will allow him to continue to grow and develop as a player and as an individual. George is a tough, well- respected member of our team and I respect his decision.’
kruis, who has won 45 England caps since 2014, had his eyes opened to the attractions of Japan at the 2019 World cup. ‘The original plan was, if I was going to go to the World cup, which I did, to check out Japan and see if I liked it,’ he said.
‘I really fell in love with it. It is a completely different place to England and the places I have played at before.
‘The things that attracted me were the food, the culture and how different the whole country is. I looked at my brother, who moved to Hong kong, and have seen the benefits.’