Whatever happened to Elliot Daly? Last sighted holding tackle bags in England training, the versatile virtuoso has disappeared from public view.
A brief reminder of his form. Daly played the first three games for the British & Irish Lions in Australia before calamity struck in the shape of a fractured arm, an inserted plate and 16 screws.
He had been outstanding until the injury against the Reds ended his tour and his hopes of a place in the Test squad. “Everybody watching him through the early part of the Lions series was thinking about him in the Test team.” Not my words; they belong to the England head coach, Steve Borthwick, shortly before Daly returned to England duty against Argentina in the last match of England’s autumn series.
The 33-year-old has been giving his all on the training field — as those unselected elements of the squad that were once known as “shags” always do — to prove his worth to the coaches
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He didn’t have the best of games against the Pumas but one indifferent match doesn’t alter the broader parameters behind a selection strategy. There’s all that Test rugby experience. The voice he brings on the pitch is very, very good. So said Borthwick.
Daly’s detractors will state that his 33 years make him an unlikely member of next year’s World Cup squad. Not according to his international head coach: “I’ve no doubt he can go the next couple of years until the World Cup.”
I wouldn’t say I have always seen eye to eye with Borthwick but he’s right when he reckoned “players who read the game like [Daly does], smart rugby players … can play even longer [at a high level] in their careers”.
Borthwick again: “Experience of Test rugby is vital … [such players are] worth their weight in gold.” Elliot’s experience, the rugby world was informed pre-Argentina at Twickenham, is “one of those”. There’s not a word of disagreement from this quarter.
So what has happened to Daly? He’s on the training field, giving his all, as those unselected elements of the squad that were once known as “shags” always have done. He’s striving in private alongside other veterans such as Henry Slade to prove his worth to the management. Yet what does he have to prove? He was able to work on his speed during his time out injured. He’s probably as quick, if not faster than ever … and yes, you can guess who said that.
Daly has featured only once for England since fracturing an arm playing for the Lions last summer
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There’s a horrible hole where squad members disappear. Doing their stuff behind the closed curtains of training. It was only a few months ago that Borthwick was espousing the virtues of Daly. Now he has become that quietly heartbreaking term for a player, the indispensable squad member.
Yet England have holes in need of plugging, in positions where Daly has that vast experience and class. Let’s start at 15. George Furbank is perceived by many as the alternative to the dogged and determined Freddie Steward but the Northampton Saint is short of match time and is a Test rookie compared with Daly.
Full back is a crucial position if England want to turn their theory of territorial pressure into counterattacking opportunities from hurried clearance kicks. Furbank undoubtedly has the knack of seeing space, but so too does Daly, and the Saracen has the more refined boot to play his part in the kicking game. He is surely part of the debate at full back before England face Italy on Saturday.
And let’s just remind ourselves of the impending situation. From a 12-match winning run to a pair of memorably poor performances against Scotland and Ireland. Italy are playing some of their best rugby. They beat Scotland, were unfortunate not to get even closer to Ireland than a seven-point losing margin in Dublin, and stayed with France for an hour.
England have never lost to Italy. Defeat in Rome and it would be England burning, this Six Nations season and the build-up to the World Cup in tatters. Isn’t Test match experience vital in such circumstances? Isn’t that voice of his “very, very good”? Isn’t this pressure cooker of a Test made for Daly?
Daly could plug holes at full back, wing or centre, or make an impact off the bench in Rome
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If not at full back, what about wing? In the absence of Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Daly is closer to being a starting wing. Are England going to recall the aerial power of Tom Roebuck, stick with Henry Arundell or will they consider the elegant Daly arcing lines in attack and that subtle left boot of his to be utilised from wing instead of full back?
If not full back, if not wing, there’s his own favourite position of centre. It isn’t where I most like seeing Daly play Test matches. For all those glorious running lines of his, there have been just a few too many missed tackles over the years. The hosts have a wonderful centre partnership in Tommaso Menoncello and Ignacio Brex. I close my eyes and admit to seeing him slip off a tackle.
But no more than Ollie Lawrence — if fit — and as for Tommy Freeman, he’s so inexperienced as an international outside centre that it’s easy to imagine him not so much falling off his opposite man as being suckered into the no man’s land where England often find themselves outflanked on “the edge”.
If Borthwick doesn’t think he needs to trust the much-talked-about Test experience in any of these three positions, there’s the overriding reason to include him in the match-day 23. Daly covers all three positions and allows maximum flexibility from the bench. If there are strong claims to include him at full back, wing or centre, the cry to include him as an impact replacement is deafening.
I’d probably pick him on the bench. No lesser a voice than that of Borthwick has previously articulated why Daly merits being more than the mere “shag”, holding the training-ground tackle bags. Nothing has changed. Proven excellence and experience still count for plenty. Don’t leave it all on the training field.