At Twickenham Stadium on Sunday afternoon ‘an England XV’
showed a fierce amount of heart and determination against an extremely experienced
and talented Barbarians side. Last year England cruised to victory however
under the tutelage of Dean Richards and Mike Tindall the 2014 Barbarians side
meant business and used every single one of their 700 plus caps to end the day
victorious.
Much was
discussed before the game regarding the age and inexperience of this England
side and some feared that they would be steamrolled by the likes of Rokocoko, Leguizamon and however in the gorgeous June sunshine thankfully that was not the case. Crucially
and indeed pleasingly for all involved in England Rugby to a man every single
player took the occasion in their stride and delivered. Now of course we would
always want to end a match on the right side of the score sheet however
sometimes it is about more than just the result, it is about the performance
after the match manager Jon Callard summed things up perfectly when he said; “it
was an invaluable experience, even though as a coach you hurt because you we
didn’t win, it will pay dividends for the future.” Jon singled out Henry Slade
for his contribution throughout the match and I couldn't agree more. Henry is wise beyond his years and once again stepped up to mark and made it look extremely easy. For me another man stood
out and that was full back Elliot Daly, now before you all say it I did see him
miss a try saving tackle on Hosea Gear mid way through the second half however that was the only blemish on an otherwise impeccable day at the office. Daly’s natural speed and vision shone throughout and
with an abundance of riches at fullback it would be great to see him run out at
his preferred position Inside Centre next time area. Fanlly Captain Graham Kitchener led the
side phenomenally; he oozed class and certainly held his own at the set piece
and in the loose.
In his usual calm
and matter of fact way acting Barbarian Head Coach Dean Ryan said that “the game was won because people
kindly kicked to Hosea Gear” now obviously there was a little more to it than
that, however Gear’s class was evident for all to see. On the pitch Ryan’s men
put life back into the Barbarians’ shirt, the spirit of Barbarian rugby was
never lost however somewhere over the last couple of years the competitiveness had
gone slightly, however today it was back! In just one week, 10 nations
came together and produced a display of rugby that was befitting of the history
and tradition of the black and white striped shirt and they did it with a smile
on their faces. Francois Trinh-Duc set a new trend when it comes to the socks
protocol mixing and matching his boots and Juan Manuel Leguizamon led like a
Champion.
For two members of the England
squad it will be a nervous evening, there is just one spot left on the plane to New Zealand for a tighthead either Kyle Sinckler or Will Collier will get it. In the post match press conference Jon Callard found it difficult to pick between
the two and he has gladly left the decision in the hands of the Senior
Management. Over the next few hours we will find out which will head out to Auckland however one thing that we know for sure
is that a tour to New Zealand in that position will be an even greater learning
curve than this fixture against the Barbarians.
Today, an England
XV taking on the Barbarians at Twickenham had everything that you could ask for
from such a fixture, it gave 23 England players the chance to showcase their
talents for now and for the future and the Barbarians highlighted their own athleticism
and quality. English Rugby is in a good place right now, it is bursting with
talent and enthusiasm and in spite of being on the wrong side of the result today’s
fixture should be deemed a huge success.
See all the Out On The Full Photos from Twickenham HERE
