Surprised England didn’t cut more of those Six Nations flops
Well, well, well, what a surprise as Eddie Jones puts pressure not just on his players but also the RFU and Premier Rugby. The inclusion of Danny Cipriani in the South African tour party is set to open a whole can of worms simply because, at this time, all the speculation as to where he will play next season has been focused on France.
As we all know, the only way he can play for England (if he goes to France) would be if there are exceptional circumstances which, as I have written before, would have to be that every English qualified fly-half playing in the Premiership was unavailable.
The question is, will a Premiership club now make a bid for Cipriani that will match what is on offer from France, or will he be prepared to gamble on taking a lower club wage with the hope of making up the difference by being selected by Jones?
With four rivals in George Ford, Owen Farrell, Alex Lozowski and Cameron Redpath, five if you include Elliot Daly, all potentially capable of filling the fly-half role, that would be one hell of a gamble.
Cipriani’s club form has been outstanding in his last few games for Wasps, which begs the question, why would Dai Young let him go unless he feels that perhaps Danny has had his day and it’s time to move on?
Either way, Cipriani is going to have to make a choice soon or risk being clubless, like James Haskell, for the start of next season. Particularly as I don’t think the interested clubs in the Top 14 will be willing to wait and see how well he does or doesn’t do in South Africa before signing a contract.
Cipriani has the same problem as Haskell when it comes to a Premiership club signing him in that if he is successful in South Africa and persuades Jones that he is worth a place in England’s World Cup squad, he won’t be available for a major part of the 2019-20 season.
Even back in the amateur days clubs were not happy at the prospect of losing players for a World Cup and Five Nations as it would be disruptive for the team having a player dropping in for the occasional game. I know because in 1991 Wasps asked me if I would mind playing in the second team just for that season when back from England duties at the World Cup and Five Nations as it would be unfair on the player, Paddy Dunston, who filled my spot in the many weeks I was away and I agreed.
Interestingly, with all the talk about the uncapped players and the returning Cipriani, not much has been said about the fact Jones has chosen not to rest a number of his key first choice players.
With the main excuse, even from Jones himself, of tiredness being a contributory factor in England’s poor Six Nations performance, it’s a surprise he has chosen to pick Farrell, Mike Brown, Maro Itoje, Chris Robshaw and Mako Vunipola. Meanwhile, he is giving his recovered injured players some game time in the hope that they will bring some experience to what is a strange looking squad of utility players, especially among the backs.
Much as I personally disapprove of Brad Shields’ inclusion, he will have a vital role to play as an experienced captain and player who has played in South Africa on many occasions.
His experience of playing in the hostile environment and at altitude will be invaluable to a squad of young players, many of whom have never played at altitude before – particularly as the first two of the three Tests will be played above 1,000 metres.
With such a short period of time between the end of the club season and the first Test, it would be better if Jones took his training squad to Andorra rather than Brighton as that would at least give them some experience of what it is like to play at that altitude.
One thing is sure, if Eddie gets his selection and team balance wrong, instead of being a step forward to the World Cup, this could end up being another tour of hell.
The demise of the Anglo-Welsh Cup was not unexpected as both countries didn’t put the necessary resources into the games to make them worthwhile from a spectator point of view.
Too many teams shorn of usual first team talents prove unattractive for any number of reasons which, as little or no attempt has been made to save it, would seem to be universally accepted.
What I think is a shame is that the Premiership have quickly replaced it with a limited cup competition for just the Premiership clubs.
There was surely an opportunity to bring the Championship on board and give them a chance of gaining experience of playing at a higher level and improving their game.
The exposure of Championship clubs to Premiership rugby would have given them an insight of what it takes to play at that level and may have helped prepare teams for the step-up should they be able to gain promotion.
By keeping themselves isolated in their own little bubble, the Premiership are building a wall between themselves and the rest of the game, but, then again, that’s maybe the plan.
“Instead of being a step forward, if Eddie gets selection wrong this could be another tour of hell”