Cowan-Dickie looking to build

By Nigel Walrond

Exeter Chiefs hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie admits that winning his first cap for England this summer was ‘more than a dream come true’.

The 22-year-old from Cornwall, who was a product of the Cornish Pirates’ youth section, came off the bench for his first England cap in their 19-14 victory over France at Twickenham last month.

"I have been away for the past eight or nine weeks in quite a tough England training camp, which has been good, and I won my first cap, which is massive for me.

"The fact it has come this young is more than a dream come true, because it is everything you want when you first start playing, but to get it this young, I don’t think I ever thought I would get it that soon."

The elation of making his England debut was soon followed by the disappointment of missing out on England’s 31-man World Cup squad, with head coach Stuart Lancaster preferring to select Tom Youngs, Bath’s Rob Webber and Jamie George as his three hookers for the tournament.

"It was a bit disappointing not to be picked, but I haven’t had much experience yet," said a philosophical Truro-born Cowan-Dickie. "I have only played 24 games in the Premiership, so to actually get the call-up to the training squad to start with was a massive thing, and to get the experience.

"To stay in the squad until the final cut was also massive and I am really happy with how far I made it through the camp, to be honest. The guys who are in the final squad are quality players and you can see why they have been picked, and I have got some time now to come back to the Chiefs and hopefully get some good experience in the Premiership and the European Champions Cup, and put a marker down for the next couple of years.

"I have got some things to work on, but it is never really a knock-back. It is always a positive to get into the England squad that soon, and I am really happy."

Cowan-Dickie returned to Chiefs’ colours in the 41-38 victory over Gloucester at Sandy Park last Saturday in the opening match in the West Country Challenge Cup – a pre-season tournament involving South West rivals Exeter, Gloucester and Bath.

"I think this pre-season tournament is quite good,’ said Cowan-Dickie, who skippered the Chiefs for the first time in the second half against the Cherry and Whites. Gloucester was a tough game, and we have got Bath at Sandy Park next Saturday, which is going to be another good game.

"I can’t wait to get out there and play them, and hopefully we can start well, and the challenges are definitely coming thick and fast for the boys. We have got Bath twice and Gloucester once still to play in the Cup, and then Bath again in the first match of the Premiership season. It is going to be a tough few weeks for the boys, but we need to dig in now, and hopefully all the work we have put in during pre-season will pay off."

Cowan-Dickie is hoping to pick up where he left off with the Chiefs last season, after missing the opening weeks of the Premiership campaign through a knee injury picked up on England’s summer tour to New Zealand.

"It was a massive boost to play for Exeter last season as much as I did, and I am just hoping to do the same this season and get some more game time in the Premiership, and you never know, I might get the call-up again for England if I am performing well, but I am still trying to cement that Premiership spot."

Cowan-Dickie believes the way the Chiefs performed last season in the Premiership helped himself and his fellow Exeter team-mates, Jack Nowell and Henry Slade, get England recognition, with the latter two included in the World Cup squad.

"We got into the top five, and I think the better the team are doing, the more we are getting recognised,’ he commented. ‘In addition to the three of us, Will Chudley got to play for England against the Barbarians at the end of last season. The selectors are looking at Exeter a bit more, and the boys are stepping up."

Cowan-Dickie says he hopes he is setting an example to the youngsters in the Chiefs’ Academy of what they can achieve if they continue to work hard and play well.

"I’d like to think so," he said. ‘This is my fifth season with the club, having come up from Truro College straight into the Academy, and to do it so young (play for England) shows the guys that it is never out of their reach.

"It is just about how hard they push themselves, and I think it shows how much myself, Sladey and Nowellsy wanted it, and they have got their rewards now, and even though it is hard to start off with, there are always rewards at the end."