England 2024/25

[Lé Ddanno]

My worry would be lightweight back 5 in forwards.
Need cone go forward from someone and only Martin in that mould.

This is honestly one of the weirdest takes I've seen since ValleyCommando was a thing here.

 

[Don't Skip Leg Day]

I've usually been critical of Ewels but he came back from SA a different player. He's absolutely there on merit IMO.

It's their diet of billtong and steroids.

 

[BPM]

True, guess I'm just a bit underwhelmed tbh. Feel like of the wider squad picks just lack ambition. Maybe I'm being too harsh.

You are. 6 uncapped players suggests a decent amount of ambition.

I'm assuming Langdon is not going on account of injury, it's not like Oghre is a conservative pick. He could easily have picked LCD as an experienced option or Walker simply because he's been in camp before, but neither would have deserved it. I wouldn't have picked Oghre personally, but at least he's in decent form.

With the exception of JvP and maybe Barbeary, I don't think anyone can be massively aggrieved. Tuima was always a 50:50 for me and I'm just not that excited about Fisilau. Good player, but not as good as the ones picked in his place.

 

[TopTen2003]

Did I read that Maro Itoje can only play one test owing to seasonal limits on game time? Or have I dreamt it? (Possible! )

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Theoretically I think he has like 100mins left he can play this season, realistically that won't matter and they'll play him as much as they want

 

[Which Tyler]

Theoretically I think he has like 100mins left he can play this season, realistically that won't matter and they'll play him as much as they want

IIRC it needs the agreement of all 10 club head coaches, and the England HC.

 

[Scotty]

Has there been any reason why JVP has been left out?

Is it Randall thats in? If so all i can think is he's had a good season and at 26, he's at the prime time to give him a shot, he deserves it, with JVP at 23 with loads of time left and an injury record.

 

[West Country Wail]

I've usually been critical of Ewels but he came back from SA a different player. He's absolutely there on merit IMO.

Have to agree on this. Maybe he had some help in SA, Genge said he can smell a Sunday dinner on a Tuesday...

 

[Lé Ddanno]

Has there been any reason why JVP has been left out?

Is it Randall thats in? If so all i can think is he's had a good season and at 26, he's at the prime time to give him a shot, he deserves it, with JVP at 23 with loads of time left and an injury record.

Deserves it? Randall had one purple patch on the side of blue in the colour wheel and never really backed it up. I'm baffled why he's in the international squad now, JvP, Quirke and Warr should be annoyed at the least.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Randall's been decent in a resurgent Bristol side this season tbf - how much of the resurgence was him vs how much of his good form was the rest of the side finally clicking? Who knows

I've never been a big fan of him but I think he's probably earned another chance - that said JvP has been in much better form and should be touring ahead of him. I would say maybe it's because JvP has only been back from injury for couple of months but they're taking Tom Curry so...

He's definitely ahead of Quirke, and the papers are reporting Warr has finally accepted the Scotland callup after getting knocked back by England again

 

[BPM]

IIRC it needs the agreement of all 10 club head coaches, and the England HC.

I don't recall the exact number, but 50min stints in both games vs. NZ could be OK. It would have been worse if Saracens had made the final.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

102 mins according to this,
Neither article mentions what the mechanisms are for breaking that rule - are they just gonna do it and deal with the consequences?
Rest him vs Japan and then, as above, plan on 2x50min appearances vs the ABs and if they accidentally go over then pay the fine or whatever?

England plan to breach Maro Itoje game-time limit after Borthwick names him in 36-man squad

England head coach Steve Borthwick dismissed player welfare concerns by picking both Maro Itoje and Tom Curry in his 36-man squad to tour Japan and New Zealand.

www.telegraph.co.uk

England to pick Maro Itoje despite just 169 minutes left on playing limit

Saracens second row on brink of breaking key welfare safeguard which stipulates that players should not exceed 2,400 minutes over a season

www.telegraph.co.uk

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

England did it with steward nothing happened to them.
Reality is the clubs won't push against it cause they want England payments, upsetting the apple cart for one player just won't be worth it

RPA have little power to stop it either

 

[Not Mike Brown's Sock]

one player

One player and realistically just over half a game...

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Reality is the clubs won't push against it cause they want England payments, upsetting the apple cart for one player just won't be worth it

Bath and Bristol on their way to cause an argument just because

 

[Which Tyler]

Bath and Bristol on their way to cause an argument just because

Are we... the new Keith Barwell?

Oh shit!

 

[Rugbyfan564]

It won't exactly look good if the RFU is just disregarding playing limits what with the major dementia crisis and legal cases.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

It won't exactly look good if the RFU is just disregarding playing limits what with the major dementia crisis and legal cases.

I mean the RFU have already done it

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Warr (and Reed) named in the Scotland squad

 

[Vieux Talonneur]

One player and realistically just over half a game...

Maybe the measure shouldn't be games / game time but also involve number and intensity of training sessions etc. Everything they do is tracked so get the Duckworth Lewis boffs in to develop a "physically knackered and **** bored of rugby" formula.

By the time Itoje gets back from NZ he'll have been on the treadmill for a year solid when taking RWC initial camps into consideration. He must already be bored shitless of rugby. And then….

Premiership final's on 14th June next year. Lions tour starts a couple of weeks later and goes into August. It's nuts.

Players will miss games here and there but few of the elite will really get the extended time off they properly need to recharge and perform at the levels they're truly capable of.