The Rugby Football Union’s succession plan for the next England head coach is so shrouded in mystery one wonders if it exists at all and Sunday’s match against the Barbarians only muddies the waters.
Jim Mallinder is in charge. He picked the England squad and has overseen coaching all week while Eddie Jones has been in the background, casting an eye over a squad full of fringe players, many of whom would hope to develop into full internationals in the coming years.
If Jones is going to stay beyond this year’s World Cup, would he not have benefited from taking the reins? Is Mallinder in the frame to replace him as a cheaper option for the cash-strapped RFU if Jones does go? “Not at all,” was Mallinder’s answer this week.
Maybe Jones is keeping a distance because he is wary of being stung, as was the case last year when a chastening 63-45 defeat compounded his woes after ending that year’s Six Nations with three consecutive losses because the Barbarians once again look formidable with Charles Piutau, Rhys Webb, Joe Marler and 478 caps in the ranks. By contrast, and because the 45 players set to make up Jones’s wider World Cup training squad have been off limits, Teimana Harrison, at the age of 26, is the only England starter with Test experience.
“Oh, I’m the grandad. I didn’t know that,” he said. “You look around our team and there are so many players that should be capped. I thought Ben [Curry] was. Smithy [Marcus Smith] has been playing outstanding. You’ve got some really good leaders. We’ve got quality all round the side, so it doesn’t feel like I’m the only one.
“It’ll be a good test for us, though. We’re quite a young squad if I’m one of the oldest. It’ll be a good experience for the boys.”
It will be some experience and, while there is the nagging fear that the Barbarians will run amok, there is plenty to like about this England side. Joe Marchant and Johnny Williams are a fine-looking centre partnership while Simon Hammersley’s inclusion is fully deserved and Josh Beaumont is a shrewd choice of captain.
In addition, Smith turned down the Junior World Cup in Argentina to take part at Twickenham and, while they are all up against it to force their way into Jones’s World Cup plans, there will be plenty looking to prove a point.
Harrison is one of those because the last of his five caps came in 2016. That year, against Australia, he was taken off by Jones on his second start after 31 minutes. “I guess there is a little bit of a point to prove,” said Harrison. “I haven’t had the best run in an England shirt, so it would be nice to get out there and put in a good shift with the boys.
“I took a little bit of rebuilding after 2016 but at the time I was focusing too much on ‘I have to do this, I have to make England again’. I went away and thought: ‘If I play well for the club, I may get an opportunity’.
“I’m quite lucky, I have got an opportunity, so it’s time to get my head down and get stuck in.”
Curry is another who will relish the opportunity in the back row alongside Harrison. He and his twin brother, Tom, were called up for the first time for this fixture in 2017. Ben was due to start but suffered a back injury and was replaced by Tom, who has gone on to establish himself in Jones’s senior side. There is nothing but pride in his brother’s achievements but Ben’s opportunity has been a while coming.
“That injury two years ago was unfortunate,” he said. “You take each season as it comes but to get the opportunity to play in a Barbarians game is something I won’t take for granted and you want to grab with two hands.
“As a family we’re really proud of Tom. What he’s done is outstanding. I’m my own person and our paths have gone different ways.
“This Sunday is about me doing what I do best to help this team beat the Barbarians. When you see it, you want to try and emulate that but we’re different people, our paths having taken different roads.”
