Exeter stars are out to impress

By Mark Stevens

Forwards coach Graham Rowntree admits there is “incredible depth” to England’s squad as they continue their build up to this autumn’s Rugby World Cup.

In what has been a busy, yet gruelling few weeks for Stuart Lancaster’s training squad, four Exeter Chiefs players remain part of the grand plans for the Red Rose country, who this weekend face France at Twickenham in the opening QBE International.

Jack Nowell will sit out the visit of Les Blues to Rugby HQ, but fellow Chiefs Geoff Parling, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Henry Slade are all part of Lancaster’s 23-man squad for the fixture.

Parling, a summer signing from Leicester Tigers, is well versed to international life having amassed 23 caps already to his name. However, Cowan-Dickie and Slade - both products of Exeter’s highly successful Academy set-up - are raw rookies on the big stage.

Slade (pictured) will win his first cap when he lines-up alongside fellow debutant Sam Burgess in England’s midfield; whilst Cowan-Dickie will be hoping to impress should he get summoned from the home bench.

All four Chiefs players have been working tirelessly, both home and abroad, in a bid to prove their worth to Lancaster ahead of the global tournament.

Watching intently from the sidelines has been Rowntree, who himself featured in the lead-up to the Rugby World Cup in 2003, but was then omitted for Clive Woodward’s final squad.

The former Leicester man knows better than anyone what it feels like to be given the hook just weeks out and says the England coaching team have a difficult selection to make before the end of the month.

“I’m not looking forward to having those chats with those guys who have given everything for the last couple of months,” said Rowntee. “My experiences will help my understanding of it and will hopefully bring some credibility to the situation.

“I’ve got no issues with how I was dealt with in 2003. My knowledge will help there, and as long as you give these guys honest feedback – telling them what to do and what not to do, what their competitors are doing instead of them – you’ve got nothing to worry about.”

However, Rowntree says the task is being made tougher all the time by the quality and effort being put in by the England players at their Pennyhill Park base.

“All the guys are putting their hands up,” he continued. “We have incredible depth and competition within this squad. They all know they have to perform against France, both home and away.”

And with Cowan-Dickie and Parling offering options up front, Rowntree is keen to see how his troops react in the heat of battle.

“As a tight five forward, you don’t get many sterner challenges than this,” said Rowntree. “That is why I am really looking forward to these two games.  We have got some young guys in the pack who have been training very well and who have been monitored by me for over a couple of years.

“But I want to see them in the white hot environment of an arena against France in a full blown test. I want to see them working together and fulfilling their roles under pressure because that is what you have to do as a rugby player - you have to keep your detail and accuracy when you are extremely fatigued.”

With the experienced Tom Youngs (Leicester) and Rob Webber (Bath) expected to fill two of the hooker berths, Cornishman Cowan-Dickie (pictured) is battling for the final spot alongside Jamie George of Saracens.

And Rowntree likes what he sees from both men, adding: ‘We’ve got real experience with Tom Youngs and Rob Webber, but the two other guys are uncapped and I’ve been watching them very closely.

“Let’s take Jamie for example, the way he has performed last season, he kept [Schalk] Brits out of a very good Saracens team and he was a consistent performer in terms of the set-piece and finished the season strongly. He’s trained well and has a lot to showcase when he gets his chance.

“As for Luke, I have been watching him since he was a prop. He moved to hooker a couple of years ago, but he’s a young vibrant player who has worked hard on the detail of his game, particularly in terms of scrum and line-out. He too has trained well and he has his chance this week.”

Equally the battle for places is just as hot with Parling battling it out alongside the likes of Joe Launchbury, Courtney Lawes, George Kruis and Dave Attwood for a role in the England engine room; whilst in the back-row Rowntree says the talent is equally impressive with skipper Chris Robshaw heading up the list.

And over the next fortnight a large nucleus of Lancaster’s squad will get their chance to impress in the back-to-back clashes with France and then the visit of Ireland to Twickenham.

“We want to win the game,” said Rowntree. “It’s France at Twickenham. We want to see all of the stuff we’ve been doing come together, so it’s a big opportunity for the guys.

“We are looking at different combinations though, as you’ve seen – there are a lot of things up in the air for people.”