Had Elliot Daly been born half a century ago he would have been hailed as one of the country’s most gifted all-rounders. As an England age-group cricketer now hoping to play Test rugby union he is the closest thing Twickenham has had to a dual international since the multi-talented Alastair Hignell, who won 14 England rugby caps and scored 119 against West Indies for Gloucestershire in 1976.
What if the 22-year-old Daly, a fast-bowling all-rounder, had accepted Surrey’s offer to join their academy rather than opting for Wasps instead? The day after he was selected for England under-15s – for whom he opened the bowling – in 2008 he hit an unbeaten 87 while batting at three in a limited-overs game for London and the South-East against the North.
When it came to choosing a profession, even so, he felt he would make a better rugby player. Which offers a clue to the type of athlete now accelerating towards the oval ball big-time.
As one of his club-mates observed on social media this week, the beauty of Daly is that opponents know what is coming but still cannot stop him. His principal weapon is not power but pace, allied to an irresistible outside break good enough to make anyone blink. “I just want to try and beat people,” confirms the Croydon-born centre, making it sound as routine as breathing. “My role as an outside-centre is to try and create space for others. If I can do that it’s job done. I want to pick on people who I might be able to run around.”
All of which – he specialises in long-range goal-kicking as well – makes him a fast-rising candidate for England’s pre-World Cup training squad on Wednesday week. Thanks to Jonathan Joseph there is a growing appetite in England for sharp midfield footwork and, with Manu Tuilagi still absent with a groin problem, Daly is one more big performance away from making Stuart Lancaster’s decision for him. Should he lead Leicester’s midfield a merry dance at the Ricoh Arena on Saturday it will also confirm Wasps as genuine play-off candidates.
His director of rugby, Dai Young, has no doubt that great things await. “Would I swap Joe Simpson, Elliot Daly and Christian Wade for anyone else? No I wouldn’t. These are international quality players. Elliot’s still a young man but he’s already played 100 games for us. I don’t think he or Joe Simpson could have done any more to try and impress. I believe we’ve got a lot of players at Wasps on the verge of England honours.”
No wonder Ireland, alerted to the Irish grandparents on both sides of his family tree, made discreet inquiries, only to be politely rebuffed.
“I told them I was English and didn’t feel Irish at all. My Irish relatives didn’t like that,” says Daly. In truth, his formative days were spent in the back garden at home, trying to tackle his brother Miles, almost four years his senior. Losing was not an option. “Mentally I always thought I could overcome everything. I wanted to achieve from day one. I think you’ve got to have that self-belief. My dad says I used to go mental if I lost when I was young. I was throwing stuff and my brother had to let me win all the time. He knew what the consequences would be if he didn’t.”
Having also represented Wasps on the wing and at full-back and played inside-centre at school alongside Marland Yarde, Daly’s versatility has also helped him negotiate the tricky transfer from schoolboy prodigy to the professional shark tank. In his first season, with Wasps battling injuries and potential relegation, he played 21 games but a subsequent groin problem led some to wonder if, physically, he would prosper at the highest level.
Now weighing in at 99kg, some 5kg heavier, the sheer panic he causes opposition defences is outweighing such potential concerns, not least in his own mind. “A couple of years ago I think people became quite size-obsessed. You’re going to get bumped off occasionally if someone’s 25kg heavier than you but if you want to make a tackle you’ll make a tackle. It’s got a lot to do with your mental state.”
In Daly’s case, there is also a firm determination to succeed rather than spend his life wondering what might have been cricket-wise. “I do think about it quite a lot. Hopefully I would have played for Surrey at some point but it’s weird to reflect where I could have got to.
“It was a very tough decision at 16. You’re so young and you don’t really know. Surrey wanted me in their academy but, in my heart, rugby was always what I thought I was best at. I had a couple of injuries in my last year of cricket and I remember thinking: ‘Can I be doing this for another 10-15 years? I’m not sure I can.’”
Cricket’s loss is transparently rugby’s gain. With the Ricoh set for a 32,600 sell-out – Leicester have never known a midlands derby quite like this one – Daly also finds himself at a club going places as swiftly as he is.
“I want to play for England, that’s my main ambition. I’ve played for Saxons, which was awesome, but I want to keep testing myself against the best players in the world.” Skip past the Tigers and his prospects will burn brighter still.
