Joe Heyes has built on his breakthrough season with Leicester Tigers and is a key part of the England pack
In a parallel universe, Joe Heyes might have finished last summer Down Under with the British & Irish Lions, but the England tighthead has no regrets ahead of a head-to-head with a pair of front-rowers who did make Andy Farrell’s squad.
The 26-year-old Leicester Tigers prop earned a first England cap back in 2021, when the Lions were in South Africa, but has had to bide his time behind the likes of Kyle Sinckler, Will Stuart and long-time Leicester teammate Dan Cole in the years since.
That culminated in a tour of Japan and New Zealand in 2024 in which he did not play a single minute and came back to Leicester wondering where his rugby career was going.
Heyes then enjoyed a breakthrough season with Leicester and while Stuart was away with the Lions in Australia, took on an even greater responsibility with England as they won a Test series in Argentina before going on to beat the USA.
For many observers, he would have been a logical call-up for the Lions when reinforcements were required midway through the tour, with Ireland’s Finlay Bealham getting the nod when Zander Fagerson withdrew and then Thomas Clarkson preferred later on.
But rather than wallow in missing out on a Lions opportunity, Heyes seized his chance with England, and will now have the chance to prove his worth against Fagerson and fellow Lion Pierre Schoeman when England take on Scotland at Murrayfield.
“I was slightly aware of the fact that I would have to go to Australia,” said Heyes of the possible Lions call-up. “But in a weird way, I was fine that I didn’t because I was very happy with where I was. I didn’t want to leave the camp.
“If three years ago there was an option to leave camp, I’d have said ‘let’s go’. But I was really happy with the group of lads we had there and we went to the USA and did something special there as well, so I didn’t want it to end.”
Heyes, along with Bath flanker Guy Pepper and Sale’s George Ford, may have been one of the big beneficiaries of the Argentina tour, getting the nod to start in the autumn even before Stuart suffered a season-ending Achilles injury. The fact he was able to do so against the All Blacks, given what he had endured in 2024, was all the sweeter.
“I really enjoyed my rugby that year,” said Heyes, speaking at an event hosted by Allianz, who have been a committed supporter of rugby for more than 13 years, championing the sport from grassroots participation to the international stage.
“I think that was one of the most enjoyable seasons I’ve ever been involved in. At Tigers, we were on the back end of some horrendous losses, but Argentina felt like a huge opportunity for me, Will Stuart was away with the Lions.
“This opportunity was to start for England and that is something that I had wanted for ages. To go to a place like Argentina where it was so hostile and confrontational, I just embraced it and went for it, there was no tomorrow.
“I really enjoyed myself out there, on the pitch and off the pitch. The group got to know each other quite well, it was one of my favourite tours.
“I think I wasn’t ready a year or two ago and I thought I was. I had to have a long hard look at myself and work on what I wanted to do to be better and be a viable option for England.
“To play against the All Blacks was pretty surreal, it was a really cool experience. It was good because I managed to get a bit of consistency in starting and getting to know what it felt like to play for England.”
England’s Guinness Six Nations opener was a thumping 48-7 victory over Wales at Allianz Stadium, an encounter which put Heyes in the slightly uncomfortable position of packing down opposite club colleague Nicky Smith.
Like the England team as a whole, Heyes won that individual battle, which was both satisfying and unsatisfying against a friend who had previously given him one of his toughest outings on a rugby pitch.
Heyes added: “I’ve had one of those bad days with Nicky Smith three years ago. It was a bit of a doom spiral and you don’t have the time to fix something on the run.
“He’s actually a good guy and we’re really close friends now. It felt incredibly awkward because now I know him, I was trying to avoid eye contact for the whole game. At the end of the game, I gave him a hug and you say ‘sorry for what I did, I didn’t mean it’.”
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