AIMS AT THE START OF THE SEASON
“For me at the start of the season my goals were to play in the Premiership which was one of my long-term goals. Get stuck into the season on loan and wait to get my chance. To be fair at the start of season I was just hoping to go well on loan and wait for my opportunity. Life a s rugby player you do wait for an injury to get your way in. Obviously I wasn’t hoping Luke James got injured, I was just waiting for my chance to get on the pitch. Alex and I had conversations about keep pushing on and I was going in the right direction. Luke was going well but he got injured as was Jason Woodward, so it fell perfectly for me in terms of that gap at full-back in the team. Luckily I came off a good performance against Leicester in the Premiership Rugby Cup so they were pretty confident to put me in.”
TRANSITION TO FIRST-TEAM RUGBY
“I’m quite a big self-critic to be honest so I nit-pick. I have been going out every game looking to get my role right for the team. You can go out and try and force things. But for me I have just tried to get my job right which has come with the perks of crossing the try-line a few times and playing well. It is about focusing on what you know will happen ie. High balls, tackles and kicking. If those opportunities come with the line breaks and tries they happen more naturally than if you force them.
“I think it has been what I expected. Luckily at Sale when you first join you train against the first team pretty much every day. I think for me it is what I excepted in terms of how the game is played out. Obviously the physicality and the contact levels will always surprise you. But in terms of the speed of the game and the way the game is played is what I expected going into it.”
WORLD CUP DREAMS
“It is a dream to play for England for every player coming through who plays in the Premiership wants to get that opportunity. But for me it is about learning and getting better as a rugby player. This is my first year. I know Freddie Steward had a year without international recognition and then in his second year he took off. So whether that happens with me I don’t know but I am just focusing on my rugby at Sale and winning the Premiership. What comes in that regard will happen naturally.”
DEALING WITH INJURIES
“The injuries are the lowest point you can get as a rugby player. It’s the worst thing you can think of as you want to be out on the pitch getting better. But I would say the main factor that pushed me to really get into this side this year was the fact that I was probably the last one in my year group to get that opportunity. We had a really good year group with Tom Curtis, Raffi Quirke, James Harper and Tom Roebuck. I have grown up with those boys in the Under 20’s and 18’s etc. So to see them get their opportunity and doing really well pushed me a little harder to get that for myself as well. I was more than happy for them to get their opportunity but at the same time I was thinking I can’t wait for mine.
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH TOM ROEBUCK
“We live together and know each other so well. It’s easy to have one side of it loving it, playing well and getting the outcomes we want together but on the flip side there is no harm in one of us shouting at the other. Both are just as helpful as each other. We can have the highs and the lows together because we know all in all it will stay on the pitch but we know if it gets a bit heated it is to make each other better in terms of playing. I think that is the best thing about the whole group because we all have that ability to celebrate the good stuff but also give each other the bad stuff.”
WATCHING OTHER FULL-BACKS
“I definitely watched other full-backs when I was younger. I think you always do if other full-backs are in good form and ask yourself why are they in good form. For me I would look at more 9’s and 10’s because if you know they have a trait of a little grubber-kick when it comes to you playing you have got it in the back of your mind in case that happens. I am trying to work on myself as much as possible.
“Jason Woodward helped me massively initially in terms of little things to look out for, how to position yourself to make the opposition not do something. 9’s and 10’s are always looking for backfield space and places to kick to put teams under pressure. If you can catch their eyes when they look for the space they are not going to put it there. Little tricks and tips have been massive from Woody.”
NEW 50-22 RULE
“Positionally we have spoken about it. We have kept the same system as we had because we run a system with two players in the backfield. When you catch the ball the first thing that comes to mind is ‘Is the 50-22 on?’ They are split second decisions. I do like running the ball and if that’s not on then you go straight to the 50-22. It has definitely changed thought-processes within the game and I think it has benefitted the game. Luckily I don’t think many people have got one against me yet.”
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