The Times - UK (2022-02-21)

the times | Monday February 21 2022 59

Sport

TMO (the monday overview)

game-changing moments as he usually
does. That is probably why Jones has
looked to play him at No 6, to free him up a bit
so that he can have those moments — the
turnovers and the charge-downs for example
— again.
Itoje is not a huge carrier — as, say, Alun
Wyn Jones is not — but you do not need him
to be the one-up carrier off the scrum half for
England. That is the job of the likes of Ellis
Genge, Kyle Sinckler, Dombrandt and Curry.

game-changing best

I

n England’s 2019 Six Nations

victory in Dublin, Manu Tuilagi

terrified Ireland. It wasn’t what

he did that caused chaos so

much as what he promised. The

threat of the rugby “superman” —

with his massive muscles exploding

out of his white kit — rendered the

Irish incapable of containing such

power any more than the hapless

New Zealand midfield of 2012 at

Twickenham. The game.

Yes, the memories go back far

enough in rugby time for one to

wonder whether Tuilagi is man or

myth. My view had long been that

England should ignore him until he

was capable of staying fit and showing

consistently brutal brilliance. Readers

with keen recollections will know that

in recent years I finally quit thumbing

on the roadside, waiting for the ideal

inside centre, and instead hitched on

to the Tuilagi bandwagon.

According to Alex Sanderson, his

director of rugby at Sale Sharks, this

Tuilagi is a different model. He has

shed weight in a determined bid to be

slightly less unreliable. The

frightening physique isn’t quite what

it was but Sanderson says we should

not underestimate the brain,

presumably to counter the diminished

brawn. The injuries have yet to be

consigned to history.

The likely selection for the Wales

match smacks of desperation. Inside

centre is that important a position.

Eddie Jones will hope Wales watch

the decade-old tapes and not more

recent rugby. Tuilagi is playing well

but is he the balanced, thinking

footballer his club coach suggests?

What England would give for even

a whiff of another No 12, the 2015

Ma’a Nonu, in the latest version of

Manu. The All Black centre was a

ferocious battering ram in his

younger days but gradually, perhaps

by playing alongside Dan Carter, he

discovered footwork. He didn’t have

to run straight, he could beat a man

with a shift of the hips. And let’s

not forget the delay on the passes

as defences made the mistake of

waiting, flat-

footed, for the

charges that

were no longer

arriving. There was

even a superb kicking

game. The opposing

midfield rushed up to negate the

threat behind the attacking

gainline. Clip. A perfect little

nudge that sent the All Black

back line sprinting into space and

glorious opportunity.

It was no coincidence that Carter

received the plaudits for the 2015

World Cup semi-final and

final. You can’t face the

greatest professional fly

half of them all with one

eye focused elsewhere.

Smith will thrive

if Tuilagi can add

passing to power

Outside Nonu was his long-term

Hurricanes partner, Conrad Smith.

The illustrious All Black outside

centre wasn’t the quickest or the most

intimidating to look at. In his civvies

he wasn’t worth a second glance. But

wearing No 13, next to Nonu, he was

transformed. His mate’s presence

gave him an extra half a metre to

organise the back three and pick

stunning running lines. There is a

case to claim it was Nonu, not his

celebrated fly half, who provided New

Zealand with their shape. It is a claim

Carter himself has happily made.

Imagine if Tuilagi still packs the

punch Sanderson says he does despite

losing some bulk. Imagine if he turns

up at Twickenham and plays as smart

as his coach says he can. Imagine if

Wales are standing on the gainline

flat-footed, awaiting the charge, and

he twinkles through a gap with a pair

of light feet, or keeps them guessing

with an occasional chip. All this takes

some imagination.

Ireland, in 2019, were fixated by

Manu. They were lured into his

legend. It enabled his colleagues to

flourish. The role of the No 12 is to

open things up for others, sometimes

by simply running hard. The greats

do a bit extra too. In Dublin, Owen

Farrell and Henry Slade flourished

inside and outside Tuilagi. His

hypnotic presence created that extra

space once so cherished by Carter

and Smith.

In the absence of Farrell, Jones can

be forgiven for dreaming of the 2019

Tuilagi, let alone the 2012 version.

Marcus Smith has functioned without

the vast presence of André

Esterhuizen, his Harlequins team-

mate, outside him. The South African

runs Tuilagi’s lines while his passing

game has a little Nonu about it. The

field could open up for Smith if

Tuilagi can run half as hard and pass

twice as well as we expect.

The best try to date in this Six

Nations was Gabin Villière’s first for

France against Italy. Its foundations

were a late, first-phase pass by the

imposing Jonathan Danty.

The French inside centre had

previously surged into the Italian

midfield, but the Italians rushed him

this time and left a defence without

cover once the ball was moved

beyond the next two passes. This is

what a threat backed with skill

looks like. Danty has developed a

kicking game as well. He is far

harder to handle than he was in

his youthful Stade Français

days when he ran like a rhino.

Slade would love to play

outside such a big and

balanced inside centre. A

decoy is good news, a decoy

who every now and then

reveals himself as more than

just the decoy multiplies a

midfield’s options.

Wales would do well to select

Jonathan Davies in the unusual

position (for him) of inside centre

and ask him to man-mark Tuilagi.

If he gets buffeted once, that is

better than seeing a defence panic

and get pulled out of shape. Wales

must call England’s bluff, unless it

is not a bluff. This is when rugby is

fun to watch. When it becomes a

physical game of poker. Raise

you Manu.

Stuart Barnes

DAVID ROGERS/GETTY IMAGES

M Vunipola

(Saracens)

1

J Heyes

(Leicester)

3

R de Carpentier

(Bath)

5

H Tizard

(Harlequins)

4

G McGuigan

(Newcastle)

2

T Willis

(Wasps)

6

A Mitchell

(Northampton)

9

H Jones

(Harlequins)

B Janse van Rensburg 13

(London Irish)

12

P Jackson

(London Irish)

10

D Thomas

(Bristol)

7

S Vailanu

(Worcester)

8

D van der Merwe

(Worcester)

11

O Beard

(Harlequins)

14

J Hodge

(Exeter)

15

Benhard Janse van Rensburg
(London Irish)
Paddy Jackson grabbed the headlines
for his dramatic last-gasp penalty but
Janse van Rensburg’s two tries were
equally pivotal in London Irish’s 32-30
victory over Saracens. The
inside centre linked with
Curtis Rona to touch
down in both corners
in the first half, he
gained 50 metres
from 11 carries and
made 12 tackles.
Irish are capitalising
on their relatively few
players lost to the Six
Nations and are now only
two points shy of the
play-offs in sixth.

Words by Angus Oliver

Player of the week Team of the week

Itoje could play

as No 6 against

Wales with

Dombrandt,

below, as No 8

Tuilagi has started only once for Sale

since injury but is hard to overlook

You want Itoje carrying off the shoulder of

players and trying to get his hands free in the

tackle for an offload. You don’t want to try to

make him into a one-dimensional carrier. His

strengths lie elsewhere in being the defensive

workhorse, the clearer at rucks, the lineout

athlete, looking for those charge-downs and

turnovers on the floor.

I think Wales will stick with the same pack as

against Scotland. Their carrying then was

exceptional. I had been critical of them in that

regard against Ireland, but they really stepped

up last weekend, and it showed how much it is a

matter of mindset as much as anything else.

I was really worried after Wales’s defeat in

Ireland, but last weekend’s victory made me

remember that sides can have such blips — we

lost 26-3 out in Ireland in 2014 and still went on

to have a decent World Cup the year afterwards

— and recover. Wales will be ready for England

and I expect it to be a close, one-score match.

As much as it appears a little desperate to go

back to him so swiftly after injury, I expect

England to select Tuilagi. I was doing some BBC

work with John Barclay and Ugo Monye when

we watched his return for Sale Sharks against

Harlequins and he made a huge hit on André

Esterhuizen, who has been in such dominant

form for Quins. He cut Esterhuizen in half and

we all looked at each other and said: “He’s

straight back in that England team.”

Tuilagi is simply the sort of player you do not

want to face. There are not many of those

around, but he is certainly one of them. If he

hits you, you know all about it. He was only a

teenager when he hit me in a pre-season match

for Cardiff Blues against Leicester Tigers, and I

was in complete shock. I lost the ball and

everything. I remember saying: “What the hell

happened there?” I had never been so rattled in

my life.

England just cannot leave him out, in my

opinion. Wales would much rather he didn’t

play. I can just imagine the scene in their camp

on Thursday. Before afternoon training the

management would always post the opposition

team on the board in the team room for us to

look at. I can picture seeing Tuilagi’s name there

next Thursday and thinking: “Ah, here we go.”

It may influence Wales’s selection too.

They may go with Jonathan Davies and

Owen Watkin at centre because of their

physicality and defensive qualities.

For the first time there is probably

some debate over Louis Rees-

Zammit’s place after his defensive

lapse last weekend allowed Darcy Graham to

score Scotland’s opening try, but, if Josh Adams

is fit again, I would expect him to replace Alex

Cuthbert on the wing. Rees-Zammit can

produce a magic moment from nothing to turn

a game. That could be vital in such a close

contest.

Neither side is completely settled, and there

are a few question marks over selection, which

only adds to the interest and intrigue in what is

always a special week.

Tackles by Bristol

Bears’ Fitz Harding

against Worcester

Warriors

Despite their differing

fortunes this season,

Leicester Tigers’ 24-20

victory over Bath was their

first Premiership win at The Rec in

11 years.

11

Stats of the week

Combined winning

margins in the six games

this weekend, the second

closest round of

Premiership action of all time. Only

round 19 in 2004-05 (11) was tighter

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