As the domestic season comes to a close it is time for England to take centre stage and this starts in a few hours time when a youthful and exciting England side take on the Barbarians.
England versus the Barbarians is
always a great fixture, it is a time that individuals emerge onto the
International stage and show exactly what they are made of, 12 months ago
Marland Yarde was handed his first taste of wearing the white jersey of England
and today many others will be doing the same. The 2013 side ran out 40-12
winners against their star studded opponents and whilst this afternoon’s match
will be tough the hope is that England will record a win.
This win won’t be easy to come by
as the Barbarians house an almighty array of talent in their squad, between them
they have over 700 International caps and represent 10 nations – on paper and I’m
sure in practice they look to be quite a force to be reckoned with. Now you would
have thought that with that much experience in the ranks nerves would be a
thing of the past however you’d be wrong... the tradition of the Barbarians
adds an extra dimension and weight of expectation to every player. This feeling was shared this week by Irish legend Donncha O’Callaghan who will play
for the Barbarians for the first time today, in an interview with Nick Heath
(@RugbyMedia) he admitted to feeling a huge weight of pressure because he
wanted to deliver a performance that was befitting of the shirt. Donncha’s enthusiasm
to ‘fulfil his boyhood dream’ of running out for the Barbarians showcased to us all
how powerful the tradition name is and I strongly recommend you enjoy the full
interview, the link at the end of the article. As mentioned throughout the Baa-Baa's squad
the talent is extremely impressive and this week they’ve been
training hard as well as enjoying a spot of fun too. The best Tweet that I saw, apart from the vast arrange of multi coloured boots on display during training, was
from Juandre Kruger showcasing his and Jimmy Cowen’s #DinnerWithAMassage !! On the pitch this afternoon watch out for the experienced captain Juan Manuel Leguizamon, the feet and talent of Joe
Rokocoko and the pivotal scrum half Jimmy Cowen, as I don’t think that we seen him at his very best yet this year! I expect Cowen to be prolific and with team-mates like O’Callaghan and Hosea Gear you can understand why I think this!
Now, let’s turn the focus onto
England and look at what they will bring to the party this weekend! The ‘seamless’
nature of this Summer Tour’s scheduling has been discussed until the cows come
home and I am not going to dwell on that, instead I am going
to draw your attention to the individuals that will be wearing white today. Some have called this a ‘nothing match’ and I must
disagree, the 23 men that have been selected to represent their country will run
out all guns blazing ready to do battle and show their worth, a strong
performance will add to their credit in the England bank and could see them on the plane to New Zealand tomorrow!
England’s
side is a delicious blend of experience and ‘youth’, it is filled with in form,
exciting talents... as you all know I’m a sucker for an electric back line and
the prospect of; Daly, Rokoduguni, Joseph, Hill, Sharples, Slade and Simpson
makes me want to get up off my chair and do a little dance!! Daly sees things few
others do, Rokoduguni, Sharples and Simpson all have electric pace and the
Chief’s pairing of Hill and Slade finish things perfectly. I’m expecting a lot
of meters to be made and eyes up rugby to be played on the bowling green
surface that is Twickenham Stadium. All of these men have scored some sublime
tries this year and wearing the red rose of England I’m expecting more of the
same! The front 3; Harrison, Buchanan and Sinckler will have their work cut out
with Taumalolo, Paulo and the Georgian Kubriashvili, however
all three have proved themselves for their Clubs in the largest games of the
season and will be raring to get stuck in to their opponents. Michael Paterson
has had a stellar season at Sale, statistically he finished the season with the
most lineouts won and will be a safe pair of hands for Buchanan to throw to. At
6, 7 and 8 we have 3 prolific back row forwards; Jamie Gibson, Luke Wallace and
Dave Ewers are three will hit the breakdown like it is going out of fashion and
all have work rates that take your breath away. The bench adds further excitement, Dan Robson, James Gaskell and Ollie Devoto are just a couple of names ready to
come on and spark even more life into what will be a fast paced and intense match.
England’s side houses a lot of
talent, the question is will they have had long enough to galvanise their
different styles together in order to deliver a cohesive and decisive
performance. For individuals a place on Monday’s plane to New Zealand would be
the ultimate prize and that in itself creates pressure however today, 23 men
wearing white shirts must go out and play the game that they love to the best
of their abilities and if they do that the rest will take care of itself!
Enjoy Nick Heath's Interview with Donncha O'Callaghan HERE
England XV: Elliot Daly (London Wasps); Semesa Rokoduguni (Bath), Jonathan Joseph (Bath), Sam Hill (Exeter), Charlie Sharples (Gloucester); Henry Slade (Exeter), Joe Simpson (London Wasps); Ross Harrison (Sale), Rob Buchanan (Harlequins), Kyle Sinckler (Harlequins); Michael Paterson (Sale), Graham Kitchener (Leicester, Capt.); Jamie Gibson (Leicester), Luke Wallace (Harlequins), Dave Ewers (Exeter). Replacements: Tommy Taylor (Sale), Fraser Balmain (Leicester), Will Collier (Harlequins), Charlie Matthews (Harlequins), James Gaskell (Sale), Dan Robson (Gloucester), Ollie Devoto (Bath), Rob Miller (Sale).
Barbarians: Juan Martin Hernandez (Racing Metro & Argentina); Joe Rokocoko (Bayonne & New Zealand), Rene Ranger (Montpellier & New Zealand), Benson Stanley (Clermont & New Zealand), Hosea Gear (Toulouse & New Zealand); Brock James (Clermont), Jimmy Cowan (Gloucester & New Zealand); Sona Taumalolo (Perpignan & Tonga), Ti‘i Paulo (Clermont & Samoa), Davit Kubriashvili (Stade Francais & Georgia); Donncha O’Callaghan (Munster & Ireland), Juandre Kruger (Racing Metro & South Africa); Juan Manuel Leguizamon (Lyon & Argentina, Capt.), Alexandre Lapandry (Clermont & France); Mamuka Gorgodze (Montpellier & Georgia). Replacements: Andrew Hore (Maniototo & New Zealand), Julien Brugnaut (Racing Metro & France), Nahuel Lobo (Montpellier & Argentina), Joe Tekori (Toulouse & Samoa), Roger Wilson (Ulster & Ireland), Tomas Cubelli (Belgrano & Argentina), Francois Trinh-Duc (Montpellier & France), Anthony Tuitavake (Montpellier & New Zealand).
