OPINION – Many other Saracens and England fans were relishing seeing Maro Itoje let loose at this year’s World Cup however, unfortunately for the 20 year old, his dream was ended prematurely following the resizing of the 50-man squad on 10 July.
When Itoje was selected in the wider Rugby World Cup training squad, Saracens Director of Rugby Mark McCall said he was looking forward to Itoje “opening people’s eyes”. Yes, this is a man who is affiliated with the same club as Itoje and has seen the development of the youngster so this is rather unsurprising.
However it’s not like a rugby figure of McCall’s seniority and experience in England rugby to throw up the gauntlet to Itoje and the England coaching set-up so it’s surprising that Lancaster didn’t give Itoje the chance to play in England’s warm-up games in August against France to see whether he could actually have lived up to the bill.
Itoje can take some solace in the fact that Stuart Lancaster, when asked about Itoje’s exclusion confirmed that he was somewhere in England’s thinking.
“Things can change very quickly and they can come back in at any point,” he said.
One disappointing aspect of Itoje’s exclusion is that despite being initially selected in the 50-man squad, being cut at the first hurdle means that while he might be in the ballpark, he’s not in the right section of the stadium.
On a personal note, it’s also very disappointing given how impressive his second half of the season was, making his debut for the England Saxons followed up by playing a pivotal role in Saracens Premiership final triumph. There is no doubt in my mind that he should currently be in Denver preparing for the next phase of England’s World Cup preparation – not sat at home pondering on what could have been.
Don’t misunderstand me – in the team or not, Itoje wasn’t going to be the man to win us the World Cup. Not only did he just make his Saxons debut at the beginning of the year, but it has been his first consistent showing in the Premiership. Not to mention the fact that experience is so important for the development of young players. To be fair he would have hard pressed even sealing a bench spot for England in the World Cup however that’s not to say his skills wouldn’t have been valuable.
But the thought of Itoje replicating his devastating ball carrying ability he showed throughout the Premiership season at a defence that has already been playing for 60 minutes is one that might linger a little. The raw explosive talent he possesses as well as his versatility in playing positions reminds me of a young Courtney Lawes and look at where he is in his current rugby career; I’m a strong advocate for giving players, particularly those who are physically capable, the chance to impress if they have earned it and Itoje most certainly has.
Unfortunately for Stuart Lancaster, he had the envied position of deciding who to leave out instead of who to select which is a very good scenario to be in and is indicative of the depth in England rugby at the minute.
Despite most likely having to watch the Rugby World Cup sat in his lounge, the overwhelming positive for Itoje is that he is just 20 years of age. Many players don’t fully mature as a rugby player for at least another two or three years so he has a lot to look forward to…
By the time the Rugby World Cup in Japan comes around, he’ll just be 24 and only 28 by the time the next World Cup rolls around. So by making the 50-man squad to begin with, Itoje has already gone a long way to cementing a long-term English spot.
In regards to 2015, the door isn’t completely shut for Itoje to get back into the World Cup fray, and I’ll be keeping my fingers firmly crossed that he does. But the missed opportunity could come back to haunt Lancaster when he’s looking to bring on a game changer in a match England are trailing and his options are limited.