It goes without saying that these are strange times, that this Six Nations will be as disconcerting as any other familiar routine when distorted through the prism of Covid-19. It is, though, easy to forget that before the virus no one thought rugby could ever become more bizarre than when Saracens were sent to the bottom of the Premiership with a points tally of nearly minus 100.
The repercussions of that distant time mean life for England’s Saracens contingent these days is yet more bizarreness. Jamie George finds himself as one of them, about to embark on a Six Nations campaign with next Saturday’s Calcutta Cup match, 150 years after the first, as if it were the opening game of a new season.
“We are really fortunate to be in this position,” he says of this alternative reality. “It has been great for our bodies to rest up a bit, but then we have been able, mid-season, to have a proper, full-blown pre-season and we have been able to tailor that to Test rugby.
“The intensity of playing international rugby for the last five years has been pretty full-on, so it has been really nice to switch off from it and get yourself right and freshen up. It is hugely exciting to get back into the fold.”
His last match was on 6 December, when England won the Autumn Nations Cup final in extra time against France, since when he has married his girlfriend, Katie, in front of 15 people and, for once, enjoyed a proper Christmas.
Saracens’ predicament turns this Six Nations into an interesting case study of players for whom the international game is the sole focus. Duncan Taylor (of Scotland) and Billy Vunipola were the only two who chose to play in Saracens’ run-out against Ealing a couple of weeks ago. Otherwise, none of their internationals has played for at least two months.
Some see Saracens’ year in exile as having progressive implications for the management of a Test player’s workload. Were central contracts to become a reality, this is much how an England player might lead his life – 10 to 15 Tests a season his raison d’être, with club rugby meted out according to need.
George is enjoying this season’s refreshing arrangement, but, tellingly, he is not convinced he would want to give himself over to it long-term. “We have test-run it for a few weeks. I love being able to contribute to Saracens, so I’m not sure I’d be able to do it for a full season.”
Further evidence for the benefits of gametime versus preparation will be on show at Twickenham, with nine of Scotland’s squad turning out for clubs in England and Wales this weekend, while George, Maro Itoje, Owen Farrell et al brush off their cotton wool. George is confident England’s Test-match specialists will be good for it. “We will have had 10 days together before the game. And that is a massive advantage, when you’re trying to get the combinations together and instil the culture.
“Usually, you have a week before an international and it’s always quite rushed. If Scotland don’t have those guys there, maybe they might be at a slight disadvantage, but I’m sure they’ll be making the most of their time together.”
Not that George feels he is underplayed. Saracens have been in pre-season mode and without the prospect of meaningful rugby on the horizon the intensity of their training has not been lacking. “The way we train is above the intensity of the game anyway. You’re playing the equivalent of two Test matches a week, so I don’t think match sharpness is ever going to be an issue,” he says.
The great Saracens experiment may also be of relevance to the British & Irish Lions, where sharpness is very often an issue for those who have played long seasons for club and country, particularly in England. The Saracens contingent should at least be fresh for that – if, of course, the tour goes ahead.
“It’d be such a shame for it to be cancelled. The preference would be to go to South Africa, to be able to tour. That would be amazing. But I’m not sure in the current climate that would ever be an option.
“If it came over here to the UK, I’m sure the public would make the most of it, Covid allowing. But I’m just desperate for it to go ahead, whatever shape it has to take.”
Since the last Lions tour, or perhaps because of it, George has matured into one of the world’s best players. After so long as an understudy at club and international level, despite form that had long demanded more, he is now a pillar of Eddie Jones’s squad – and all the more important with the absence from the front row of Joe Marler, Mako Vunipola and Kyle Sinckler.
“At that stage in my career, not being a starter for England, to start all three Lions Tests [in New Zealand in 2017] gave a huge boost to my confidence. Once a Lion, always a Lion. You have to hold yourself accountable in the way you train, the way you play. It puts a little bit more pressure on.”
Will life as purely an England international help or hinder the management of that pressure? Strange as this Six Nations is going to prove, for England it might also serve as a test case for an alternative way.
