Once again time has flown by and the RBS 6 Nations is upon us and yesterday the formal launch took place at the Hurlingham Club in South West London. It was an opportunity for all captains and coaches to set out their stall ahead of the Championship. While we are combatting the freezing temperatures England’s squad are putting in the hard yards over in Portugal and Dylan Hartley gave us an insight into life in camp right now;
“Competition is hot and that brings out the best of the guys in training I think. It’s an aspirational place to be and I think when you’ve got people climbing over each other to be there it only brings the best out of them.
“It is mate [a fun place to be]. I was saying to Eddie the other day it is good to have all of the boys back together. When you’ve got guys coming back from injury the energy that they bring back into the squad - the guys love each other’s company and it’s a really good place to be.
"Not say that it wasn’t before but we’ve got good people in the room and when the guys enjoy each others company off the field the on the field becomes a lot easier. So training becomes, not easier physically, but it’s a good place to be. It’s a good environment.”
Needless to say England's environment is one that Dylan Hartley is at the heart of and drives. The 30-year-old was integral to their success over in 2016 and that was something that many people quickly forgot on the 10th December last year when he got it wrong for Northampton Saints.
Needless to say England's environment is one that Dylan Hartley is at the heart of and drives. The 30-year-old was integral to their success over in 2016 and that was something that many people quickly forgot on the 10th December last year when he got it wrong for Northampton Saints.
In my view, the vitriol and malice directed towards Dylan following that incident was overboard. Let's be clear I’m not condoning his action, he got it wrong and would admit that himself, yet the social media comments went far too far and we saw the keyboard warriors make spectacles of themselves. On Wednesday he spoke openly and honestly about his reflection over the past few weeks;
“I always reflect, I think being a part of this group is a privilege and when you know the journey that the team is on is going somewhere - we want to be the best team in the world - to be a part of that and to feel like it’s going somewhere is a privilege. So I’ve had a good reality check and I understand that I’m in a privileged position whether that be a player in the team or the captain.”
The fact of the matter is that this England squad are at their best with Dylan Hartley as captain. There's no doubt that he and Eddie Jones will have had words about what went on in December but I believe it wasn't ever a deal breaker in terms of his captaincy. Dylan drives the standards in training performs the link role between the squad and coaches with ease and has the ultimate respect from all involved.
The words ‘I feel fit, fresh and focused’ were his succinct definition of where he is at right now and a lack of match game time is not a problem. Injury curtailed his match minutes ahead of the autumn series and Australia tour yet he stepped up to the mark with ease and is well aware of the challenge that France will pose;
The words ‘I feel fit, fresh and focused’ were his succinct definition of where he is at right now and a lack of match game time is not a problem. Injury curtailed his match minutes ahead of the autumn series and Australia tour yet he stepped up to the mark with ease and is well aware of the challenge that France will pose;
"If you look at France they have huge blokes, and they love a scrum and a maul,” said Hartley. If you look at their backline, they can be very direct and have some big threats. They also have the ability to play an unstructured offloading game, where the whole team can come to life.
"So they can play a tight, slow, set-piece game or can speed it up and play a fast, unstructured game. We have got to be prepared to deal with both and make sure we play the game the way we want to."
England's opening match will test them, particularly due to the injuries that they are combatting right now, yet the base platform that they set during 2016 will count for a huge amount. Preparation time is always limited ahead of the RBS Six Nations however their foundations are solid and with Eddie Jones cracking the whip and driving performance levels day-by-day they should be absolutely fine.
Needless to say I expect nothing less than a positive opening performance, and victory, from England on the 4th February against France and on top of that I firmly believe that Dylan Hartley will turn heads with his sharpness and work rate and silence those that cut him to shreds back in December.
Needless to say I expect nothing less than a positive opening performance, and victory, from England on the 4th February against France and on top of that I firmly believe that Dylan Hartley will turn heads with his sharpness and work rate and silence those that cut him to shreds back in December.
