England star Ben Earl opens up on key elements behind flying autumn type
Ben Earl has started all three of England’s Quilter Nations Series matches and provided his usual all-action performances in the victories against Australia, Fiji and New Zealand
Ben Earl has hailed the impact of his ‘inspirational’ back-row partner Guy Pepper as key to England’s autumn success.
The 22-year-old has been a breakout star in the Quilter Nations Series, building on his eye-catching introduction to the international arena in Argentina over the summer with a string of impressive displays in the wins over Australia, Fiji and New Zealand.
Earl, who has also started all three matches and provided his usual all-action performances, has loved playing alongside Pepper and backed the Bath ace to enjoy a long international career.
“The fact he is 22 years old and playing the way he is, in the manner he is, against some of the opposition speaks volumes for his development and maturity,” Earl said.
“Guy’s ceiling is super high, he has been inspirational the way he has carried himself, and hopefully he gives us another strong performance at the weekend.
“He has been fabulous, he has been great, but everyone has been great. Everyone has been playing really well and doing their bit.”
Earl hailed last weekend’s 33-19 win over the All Blacks as ‘right up there’ with his best experiences in an England shirt but knows it may count for little if they do not back it up against Argentina on Sunday.
Los Pumas are fresh from a superb comeback victory over Scotland in Edinburgh and England will be leaving no stone unturned as they look to pick up where they left off.
“Steve (Borthwick) is brilliant on that, he is very level,” Earl said. “Regardless of whether we have won by 50 or lost by 50, you wouldn’t know.
“We will be working super hard this week and we are looking forward to getting back to it, coming back here (to Allianz Stadium) and finishing off strongly.
“With the context of how close we have been to beating the All Blacks three or four times, to go and finally do it was great.
“The way we did it was great as well, reacting from being 12-0 down to winning the game was amazing. It was a great day all round.
“You could almost pick three England XVs and they would be pretty competitive on any stage.
“There is a saying ‘if you’re standing still, you are going backwards’ and there is definitely an element of that throughout the team.”
Earl was speaking at the launch of the Allianz Kickstart Programme, a series of six lessons designed to roll out T1 Rugby – a non-contact form of the game – in schools across the country.
A combination of exciting games, cooperative learning exercises and videos have been produced to help youngsters discover the sport, and Earl is excited to see what impact it might have on the next generation.
“Rugby teaches you so much and I just love that everyone has a role to play – you can’t achieve anything without each other,” he said.
“Rugby is one of those very few outlets where you can go and express yourself, be physical, be aggressive and actually be applauded for that.
“It is a great team sport and there are not many where the 1-23 is as vital as any other position.”
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