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Gatland has delivered a 'superstar' assessment of Marcus Smith
Mid-trip call-up Marcus Smith will head home from the 2021 Lions tour with a ringing endorsement from Warren Gatland, the coach who brought England rookie out to South Africa as an early July injury cover for the injured Finn Russell rather than bring in veteran Ireland out-half Johnny Sexton who had featured in Test matches for the famed tourists in 2017 and 2013.
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The 22-year-old had just come off at Twickenham in his second capped appearance for England on July 10 when he learned that he was wanted by the Lions and the 2021 Gallagher Premiership title winner with Harlequins went on to make one tour appearance, starting the July 17 match versus the Stormers in Cape Town.
Smith didn’t go on to feature in the Test series versus the Springboks, Gatland instead selecting Dan Biggar as his No10 for all three games with Owen Farrell twice providing cover from the bench and Russell filling that back-up role in Saturday’s series decider.
However, the England youngster made an indelible impression on the New Zealander, Gatland claiming that Smith would have a considerably meatier Test career of more than two caps if he was Irish, Scottish or Welsh.
He also suggested Smith would use his experience of the 2021 Lions to return as a star in Australia in 2025, progress similar to that experienced in South Africa by first-choice midfielder Robbie Henshaw after he had learned the ropes on the 2017 trip to New Zealand.
The 2025 tour to Australia was a post-game topic in Cape Town, Warren Gatland getting asked if he will be available to coach and what needs to change in the build-up for that series to be a success #LionsTour2021 #LionsRugby #BoksvLions #CastleLionsSerieshttps://t.co/SxzaLzPtQ0
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 7, 2021
“Marcus Smith is going to be a superstar in the game,” enthused Gatland. “He is incredibly talented. If he was probably at any other of the four home nations he would definitely have been playing internationals by now and hopefully he gets that opportunity going forward because he has definitely got an incredible amount of talent.
“There are probably some other players that haven’t been involved but their experience from this will hold them in really good stead for their national teams when they return home and if they do get picked in four years’ time for another Lions tour, that experience will be invaluable for them.
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“A really good example there, I thought Robbie Henshaw was excellent and he probably learned from the experience four years ago. That really brought him on, really improved him as a player in the last four years, and there are going to be a number of players in the same boat and you end up with that mixture of really experienced players, players in the middle and some youngsters who will really grow from being part of the Lions.
“I just hope they [players such as Smith and Sam Simmonds] have learnt a lot from this tour, not so much from playing but from the other players around them in terms of their professionalism and the way that they train, all the extras they do, their recovery. They definitely would have benefited from that.”
"Congratulations to South Africa"
– Lions coach Warren Gatland has held his last media briefing as the 2021 tour head coach following his team's 19-16 loss to the Springboks in Cape Town#LionsTour2021 #LionsRugby #BoksvLions #CastleLionsSerieshttps://t.co/2cvdLYlIRi
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 7, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Adding to earlier comment. Cullen Grace has been playing great at no6. Lio-Willie , who was on fire a few weeks ago, had a bad game. I think Cullen should have been moved to 8 earlier, Dominic Gardiner on earlier. Feel for Quinten Strange , put in a big shift .
2 Go to commentsWe dominated the scrums Ben Curry was all over pitch again .Surely James Harper got to be one of best English tightheads
1 Go to commentsRoos is a better option at 6 than 8 for the boks. Needs to work on his windgat though.
1 Go to commentsThe Sharks’ 2nd team maybe?
1 Go to comments‘radical’
1 Go to commentsCome back to Christchurch Robbie, please!
1 Go to commentsI think there is zero chance Sam Cane will be selected for another Test. There is simply no point except sentimentality. Razor is not sentimental- ask Wyatt Crocket. Razor is a ruthless selector
4 Go to comments> It would be best described as an elegant solution to what was potentially going to be a significant problem for new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson. It is a problem the mad population of New Zealand will have to cope with more and more as All Blacks are able to continue their careers in NZ post RWCs. It will not be a problem for coaches, who are always going to start a campaign with the captain for the next WC in mind. > Cane, despite his warrior spirit, his undoubted commitment to every team he played for and unforgettable heroics against Ireland in last year’s World Cup quarter-final, was never unanimously admired or respected within New Zealand while he was in the role. Neither was McCaw, he was considered far too passive a captain and then out of form until his last world cup where everyone opinions changed, just like they would have if Cane had won the WC. > It was never easy to see where Cane, or even if, he would fit into Robertson’s squad given the new coach will want to be building a new-look team with 2027 in mind. > Cane will win his selections on merit and come the end of the year, he’ll sign off, he hopes, with 100 caps and maybe even, at last, universal public appreciation for what was a special career. No, he won’t. Those returning from Japan have already earned the right to retain their jersey, it’s in their contract. Cane would have been playing against England if he was ready, and found it very hard to keep his place. Perform, and they keep it however. Very easy to see where Cane could have fit, very hard to see how he could have accomplished it choosing this year as his sabbatical instead of 2025, and that’s how it played out (though I assume we now know what when NZR said they were allowing him to move his sabbatical forward and return to NZ next year, they had actually agreed to simply select him for the All Blacks from overseas, without any chance he was going to play in NZ again). With a mammoth season of 15 All Black games they might as well get some value out of his years contract, though even with him being of equal character to Richie, I don’t think they should guarantee him his 100 caps. That’s not what the All Blacks should be about. He absolutely has to play winning football.
4 Go to commentswhat’s happening to Ian Peel?
1 Go to commentsAs a Crusaders fan , so disappointed , again.But I think Fergus Burke was all class for the Crusaders in his first game since October last year. Fletcher Newell , was so good at prop. Johnny McNicoll has been gold since returning from Wales. Noah Hotham brilliant , in a coming of age second season for the Crusaders.Jone Rova did really well at centre. The end of the game was tough.Sevu Reece , what a game/season in tough times.
2 Go to commentsFellas a balloon
3 Go to commentsBlues B team on display and made no race of it. By far the best team in SR with the Hurricanes barely getting past the winning post. Up the Blues 💙
7 Go to commentsWould be amazing to have Servette Genève reaching this level
3 Go to commentsThe Crusaders can't buy a win this season. Surely Penney's contract won't be renewed. There's still enough talent in the squad that they oughta be winning more.
1 Go to commentsABs captain for 23 seasons. Decent record. Surely nobody will surpass it. Legend. But alas a typo…
4 Go to commentsJust FYI Rugbypass, I for one am tired of your clickbait titles and thumbnails and will be clicking them no longer. Good day.
1 Go to commentsI think Farrell despite all of the stick he gets in the media is still one of if not the best fly half in the world. He is literally the full package. He can kick one of the best in the world, probably has the best defensive game of a fly half in the world and if he wants to he can run, take contact and find an offload to keep the pace of the attack. I dont know why he isnt spoken more about still being one of the best in the world with the likes of dupont. Farrell is the ultimate captain and team leader and is experienced- he has been in nearly any situation you can think of. I still believe due to these reasons that he is England’s best ever player and is still one of the best players in the world.
48 Go to commentsBlues are dominating up front and that’s been a long time coming. They have won the up front confrontation which is where canes, hilanders and act brumbies are also strong.
7 Go to commentsJust watched brumbies v safas game sadly not a show in he’ll thryr anywhere near quarters or semi contention. Admittedly some issues around new comers bot what stands out for me is coaching management, poor game planning and accuracy.
5 Go to commentsOne tough SOB!
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