Carter: Rugby needs leaders like Farrell
DAN CARTER has been travelling the world rubbing shoulders with Prince Harry in the US, and his next stop is Twickenham to welcome Owen Farrell into rugby’s royal century club.
Farrell is primed to win his 100th England cap against the All Blacks on Saturday, becoming the third player to reach the landmark after Jason Leonard and Ben Youngs.
‘What Farrell’s contributed to English rugby has been immense,’ Carter told The Mail on Sunday. ‘I played against him at international and club level and he drives the teams he plays for. He demands excellence and to sustain that for 100 caps is an incredible.
‘I always remember him setting the tone with his body language against the Haka in 2019. He’s one of the rare characters and rare leaders that the game needs. I think he’ll get a lot more respect when he finishes the game. He’ll go on to beat my points scoring record and then he can retire after that!’
After retiring from rugby last year, Carter received a message from Prince Harry to congratulate him on his glowing career. ‘He wrote me a beautiful email,’ said Carter. ‘He loves his footy and has some good banter. We first met back in 2003 and he often brings that up.’
Farrell has never emulated his 2003 predecessors by winning the World Cup but Carter believes England should persist with his combination with Marcus Smith for next year’s tournament.
‘England had George Ford at 10 and Farrell at 12 for a long time, so having two play-makers is nothing new,’ said Carter. ‘You just need a big, strong ball carrying centre if that’s going to be your 10-12 combination. We had a similar thing with myself and Aaron Mauger. We needed a Ma’a Nonu or a Tana Umaga at 13. Manu Tuilagi is a big boy, isn’t he?
‘Owen’s played enough Test matches now to slot in at 10 or 12. The big thing is you’ve got an inform Smith who is a real talent and you can’t afford to leave him out. The more often they play together in pressure situations, the more the trust in that combination will build.’
As with England, the All Blacks have been slow to build new combinations since the 2019 World Cup. Their campaign has been blighted by inconsistency and Carter believes Saturday’s meeting at Twickenham will offer a reflection of their progress.
‘They are building,’ he said. ‘They will be frustrated with their inconsistency this year. They have shown on numerous occasions this year that they are world class when they get things right.
‘Joe Schmidt has brought some real discipline in attack and they have brought in a couple of younger forwards who have really stepped up. We know what the backline are capable of so it’s just a case of setting that platform up front.
‘It’s been a tough year. England are in a similar situation with their inconsistency. Twickenham is one they will target, and if Farrell wins his 100th cap it will bring a little bit more edge to what is already a blockbusting
Test match.’
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