Excitement for Thorley with his first England call

OLLIE Thorley said he is “full of excitement” after being caught by surprise by his England callup.

The winger discovered he had earned his place in Eddie Jones’ squad to prepare for the opening game of the Six Nations against Ireland when Gloucester head coach Johan Ackermann gathered the squad together and revealed the news.

“It was incredibly exciting for me, that’s the main emotion, I was full of excitement when Johan told me,” Thorley told the Gloucester Rugby website.

“I genuinely wasn’t expecting it all, and so it took a bit of time for me to process what Johan was saying to me.

“It was quite nice how he did it in front of all of the boys as well, and I really appreciated that. Excitement is the big word.”

It is the first time former Under-20 international Thorley has been named in a senior England squad but he recently attended a get-together for medical tests.

The 22-year-old will travel with the squad for a training camp in Portugal next Wednesday and hope to stake his claim.

“It is definitely intense, and I think you could tell that from the moment you walked in. There was a great buzz around the place, and it was incredibly focused.

“Everyone knows what their goals are, and I sort of like the intent that everyone has. It goes without saying how professional the environment felt, and everything like that.

“Going there and getting a taste of it made me want to experience it again, so I’m really glad I have the opportunity to do that in the coming weeks.

“The camp will of course, compared to that, be a step up, but hopefully it will be a good one.”

Thorley missed the start of the season through injury but has scored five tries in nine appearances since his return and was the Premiership Player of the Month for November to catch the ey of England head coach Jones.

“I’m just glad that after putting some focus on developing my game this year it has been spotted and I want to grow on the pitch from this,” said Thorley.

“There’s been a couple of guys at Gloucester Rugby who have been helping me out, and giving me pointers like Charlie Sharples, Tom Marshall and the like.

“I’ve definitely benefitted from everyone here at Gloucester.

“It is really good to get the recognition from England, and from Eddie Jones, and now I’m just really excited to get into the camp, and I’ll probably learn a lot more and get started.”

Thorley will be competing with the likes of former Gloucester teammate Jonny May, Joe Cokanasiga, Chris Ashton, Elliot Daly and Mike Brown for a wing spot.

“The Six Nations has got to be one of the best tournaments in World Rugby, if not, the best,” said Thorley.

“I’m tremendously excited, and it’s going to be a great first game against Ireland.

‘It’s going to be incredibly competitive in terms of selection for that game, but I am going to give it a best shot.

“I’m hugely excited, and honoured to be named to potentially play for England, and it’s going to be amazing.

“It’s a very proud moment, and I’m thankful to everyone around me who has helped me get to this point.”