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What Rob Baxter really feels about England boss Eddie Jones and his treatment of the snubbed Sam Simmonds
Exeter boss Rob Baxter has opened up about the true level of his disappointment that in-form Sam Simmonds was overlooked by England boss Eddie Jones for the entire Guinness Six Nations campaign.
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Baxter was diplomatic earlier in the campaign, telling RugbyPass in the wake of the opening round defeat for England by Scotland: “Whether his focus is to prove people right or to prove people wrong, whatever his driver is, it’s working very well for him because he is performing very well in some tough games for us.
“What it comes down to is how they perform at the weekend and what he has shown is that he is dealing with it exceptionally well.”
Six weeks later and with the 26-year-old Simmonds still without an England cap since a March 2018 appearance versus Ireland, Baxter was far more elaborative about the ongoing omission of the Exeter No8 from his country’s Test squad.
With Simmonds burning up the Gallagher Premiership try-scoring charts – his tally of 14 is six more than next-best Alex Dombrandt – there was a myriad of calls for him to get an England call-up, Lawrence Dallaglio being among those supporters most vocal in advancing the Exeter player’s credentials.
Sam Simmonds has scored 52 tries in 76 Test, Premiership and Champions Cup games compared to Billy Vunipola's 32 tries in 208…
– Yet Simmonds is playing on Saturday at Sandy Park while Vunipola runs out at Twickenham with England ?#SixNations #ENGvITAhttps://t.co/VjIpqY4UpY
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 13, 2021
However, this all fell on deaf ears as Jones stuck to what he had and started the inconsistent Billy Vunipola in all five England games at No8, favouritism that did the team few if any favours as Vunipola’s poor campaign was encapsulated by how Ireland’s CJ Stander easily sat him down with one second-half Aviva Stadium carry last Saturday.
With the Six Nations finished, the focus has now shifted to whether Simmonds can secure Lions selection despite not having featured for England this spring and his try-scoring performance some weeks ago for Exeter at Bath must surely count in his favour as Warren Gatland was present on that particular Saturday at The Rec.
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Asked was he disappointed and surprised by how Jones ignored Simmonds for the entire England campaign, Baxter said: “I would say yes. Probably not initially because for obvious reasons the England team had had some success in the early season games and so there is no real argument at that stage for breaking that team up. That’s the truth, that’s professional sport.
“But potentially once it became obvious there were we some guys who were just lacking form, be it through lack of game time or whatever it was, I was a little surprised there weren’t some changes made,” continued Baxter at his weekly club media conference on Tuesday, three days after England’s Six Nations ended with a whimper in Dublin.
“Then again, and this is why we have got to all sit back and see the bigger picture, there were some pretty difficult decisions that had to be made around that 28-man Covid bubble that was agreed before the tournament started. It’s probably a really difficult scenario.
“When you break it down you had a group of players that had been successful together and you can’t say they hadn’t. Whatever anyone thought about the quality of rugby, they were winning games.
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“Then we were in a scenario where it is relatively difficult to chop and change that squad as it would be too fluid and there was the scenario where some of your key players from the earlier games just hadn’t played any rugby for months.
“If there was going to be an error in the squad, the error was maybe not making an early realisation that some guys would just be off form through lack of rugby. But again, everybody can make those decisions and make those things in hindsight.
"A No8 with pace off the base of the scrum, getting over the gain line…"
– Ex-England skipper Lawrence Dallaglio wants Test rugby fans to be able to savour the talent Sam Simmonds has #SixNations #PremRugby #BATvEXEhttps://t.co/maiYuM71kI
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 6, 2021
“That is what they are, some of those form decisions. They are purely hindsight because they couldn’t have been made at the time as the players weren’t playing. It’s more of a complex question than quite simply that.
“For Sam, he is doing exactly what he needs to do. He is playing very, very well every week, he is scoring tries, he is doing what he is good at and fair play to him, he is doing it in front of the people who really matter. Up at Bath he had a very, very good game and who was stood in the grandstand? Warren Gatland.
“Warren Gatland is the guy who can pick Sam next for the international scenario. That is his next opportunity now. His next England opportunity will be a bit behind that, so he is doing the right thing, he is playing well for us in front of the right people.”
Rob Baxter didn't shy away from questions about Eddie Jones and England at his weekly media conference on Tuesday
https://t.co/3O1n7EXw24— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 23, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
They have been cruelled by injuries but almost nobody (Sevu Reece and Fletcher Newell big exceptions) has played above himself which regularly happened before. Surely Scott Robertson had maintained the recruitment programme and it looks like a reasonable squad. Last in this competition will stall a lot of careers. Penny seems likeable. But it’s not enough even though this was better. We haven’t been good enough and it’s not helped by the “it’s been 15 years since… “etc “after nearly every match. Seems somehow a soft gifting of something once valuable. Kieran Read giving comments last week almost choked describing the easy surrender of possession by the forwards. I’d love to think that the senior players some of whom are back can show enough pride in the jersey to test the Blues next week.
3 Go to commentsWho will Joe select for the back three with so many in form candidates? Just hope he doesn’t get shafted like Dave Rennie and to a lesser extent Deans.
5 Go to commentsAlways reluctant to blame a coach when losses rack up, but Penney must go. The backline is dysfunctional and the coach must carry the can. No cohesion, no idea and in many cases, minimal skill. The trains out of Roma St depart faster than the ball from Crusaders’ set pieces. Wouldn’t be surprised if the forwards went on strike.
3 Go to commentsAdding 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 .
5 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.
5 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 comments