James Haskell - Part Three

James Haskell has a bright future and if he can continue to improve and learn from those around him he may well earn as many England caps as his hero Lawrence Dallaglio. Today I ask him about his future in the England team and what he has gained from players and coaches at Wasps.
Haskell is a down to earth guy who knows he’s good but also knows he could be better.

“I think I’ve still got a long way to go, I feel confident and pleased with my ability, I’m trying to work as hard as I can in the areas I need to polish up.”

“I always need to improve skills, my tackling, my ball carrying things like that, all the little nuances, the rucking, you can only train so much which its about playing, I’m only 22 and only played about 35 games if that.”

When asked about his chances for selection for the Six Nations, his modesty kicks in.

“To be honest with you, I genuinely haven’t thought about it. I think if you do well playing for your club, especially one like Wasps, then hopefully, you will be considered.”

“Thinking about it now, I would be very disappointed if I didn’t have an opportunity, but nothing is guaranteed and you have to keep playing well, there are so many talented back row guys out there, it’s matter of keeping performing really. I would love to get another opportunity, to be involved again.”

Coaching Cream

At only 22 James is still in the infancy of his career, however he has already the chance to work and play with some of the best in the world.

With Sean Edwards lurking in the background James was quick to praise the coaching team.

“We’ve got a fantastic coaching setup, Sean is a legend an amazing coach and he’s very passionate about the game, he doesn’t just turn up, he thinks about it all the time.”

“Dowdy (Craig Dowd) is the most capped All Black prop, so he keeps our feet on the ground, I’m like a sponge just trying to soak it all up really.”

Welsh Kiwi

He also had the chance to gain experience from Warren Gatland the new Wales Coach.“He was a great man manager, a great coach in terms of the way he gave me and Tom (Rees) opportunities, he brought out the Wasps attitude of work hard play hard.”

And what of Warren’s new job?

“I think it will be very good for Wales, I was disappointed England didn’t look at him and might have taken him, because he is such a good coach.”

Heroes

It’s not just the coaches at Wasps, the players also inspire and encourage Haskell.

“The senior players like Lawrence, that is who I look at, Tom (Rees) and I are still very much learning, these guys have been there done it, witnessed the pitfalls.”

“Reesy and me have been in a similar boat, Tom has forged ahead and had the chance to play four or five games and establish his talent, I want to emulate him and get those opportunities.

“When he got into the World Cup I was gutted he didn’t play as much as he should have done, I would have liked to have done that but u know, I’m still fairly young so we’ve got a lot of time on our side to do things.”

This is the last part of my interview with James Haskell, I would like to thank both James and Wasps for the opportunity to do this.

James Haskell - Part Two

James Haskell has had a varied and exciting career and he is still only 22. Today I ask him about his experiences with the Barbarians and the England Sevens Squad as well as his relationship with Matt Hampson.

Last year James played for an England XV against the Barbarians.

“It was my first real taste of being involved with England, I really enjoyed it.”

“It was a weird weekend, I was in Amsterdam playing Samurai Sevens, in a tournament we won, and I got a call saying ‘listen we want you to be involved in the England team against the barbarians’, I thought it’s a wind up”

“It was a great thing to play at Twickenham with an England squad playing against a team that had a lot of talent, I would love to do it again, whether it was for the Barbarians or England.”

Following the recent controversy with Premiership players being denied the chance to play for the Baa Baas I asked James what he thought of the situation.

“I think it’s disappointing, the Baa Baas will lose their mystique, they will struggle.”

“However, clubs can’t afford to have these players missing, results are so important, because at the end of the day it’s a business I do understand both points of view.”

Sevens

The Barbarians are famous for playing champagne rugby, as style of play which also makes the IRB Sevens Series so exciting.

“I really enjoy sevens, I think it has a really important role. I can see the benefits from working with Phil Greening and Mike Friday, it was invaluable, it helped my game 10 fold”

Although he does admit it has its limitations as far as developing the 15-man game

“I don’t think going to every game would be good for me, but I would like to get a tournament under my belt every season, keep things ticking over. I think it helps you as a rugby player, but it can detract a bit from 15s.”

And as far as future opportunities in 7s go James understands it’s not all in his hands.

“I have spoken to them (Wasps) but I’m not sure they would let me go yet, but I’m sure if I don’t play very well they might boot me out!”

Matt Hampson Trust

As well as all of James’ rugby exploits he also finds time to support the Matt Hampson Trust.

Following the collapse of scrum during England U21 training in 2005 Hampson tragically became a quadriplegic.

However the support he has been given by those in the game has been phenomenal.

“I was obviously there, at the time, playing in the scrum when he hurt himself.”

“I think, its very easy at this time of life to not except your own mortality, and not appreciate what opportunities you have and how lucky you are.”

“I speak to Matt all the time, he so positive about lots of things.”

“If I was in a similar circumstance I wouldn’t be as strong or brave, it’s made me see more of my character, and its puts a perspective on things.”

“Hopefully if I could show half the courage and determination he’s got then I will be able to go a long way.”


This is Part Two of my interview with James Haskell. Tomorrow – Haskell on his future in the England team and the players and coaches who have helped him along the way.

James Haskell - Part One

Wasps have been at the top of English rugby for a number of years. They have consistently challenged for and won silverware and also regularly provided a number of key players for England. Last week I got the opportunity to speak to James Haskell one of their rising stars and find out what the future holds for both himself and the club.

James Haskell is part of one the most exciting and dynamic squads in the Premiership and his talent hasn’t gone unnoticed. Last year he won his first England caps during the Six Nations when he formed an all Wasps back row with Tom Rees and Joe Worsley.

Since then he was unlucky to be cut from the final World Cup Squad but his form for club should ensure he doesn’t remain on the sidelines for long.

“When I came back from the world cup training squad I looked at the guys around the team and there was so much talent”

Slow Start

However it didn’t all go to plan in the early stages of the season.

“The results didn’t go our way but only due to a few minor details, we turned the ball over too much, a lack of discipline, and our leadership and direction.”

“That is the sort of thing the England guys brought back, its pretty good we’ve got the confidence back, because we have a lot of talent.”

Back to back wins over Newcastle and a number of other impressive wins in both the EDF and Heineken Cup have put Wasps’ season back on track.

“We turned the results round in the Heineken Cup and the EDF, and we’ve carried that through. But it’s all down to the hard work we’re putting in and the guys are taking more pride in their performances and lowered the error rate and that’s the key really”

‘A’ Team

Coinciding with the success of the first team the ‘A’ team have also started their season with a bang. Three impressive wins from three have made them early favourites to repeat their glory from last year. Having played a number of games for the A team over recent seasons I asked Haskell if he has had a chance to watch any games.

“Unfortunately I haven’t been able to get down to one, but the good thing about Wasps is that we are all part of one squad, one team.”

“The players try to take an interest in everything that happens, I’m always interested to see them doing well, it’s a mark of the talent in the squad.”

It’s also a good chance for the first team players to keep an eye over their shoulder for up and coming players.

“I’m not a great watcher of games I could potentially be involved in, when you see your competition playing well it's never a nice feeling.”

This is Part One of my interview with James Haskell. Tomorrow – Haskell on the Baa Baas, Sevens and Matt Hampson.

Coventry Teetering on Edge of Abyss

Coventry City fans could be handed a miserable early Christmas present next week if no one decides to buy them out.

The club officially registered to go into administration yesterday and they now have ten days for someone to put an offer in.

If there are no offers they will be docked the mandatory 10 points which will see them move into the drop zone at the foot of the Championship.

It's not all doom and gloom though as the club insist this is a controlled decision which will simply speed up their sale, and ultimatley their revival.

"This is merely a process protecting the bank and its creditors, and should speed up the potential takeover and therefore take Coventry City into a solvent financial situation." the club said.

The expected new owner is Ray Ranson and Sisu Capital, however it is a gamble and if it falls through they could be in serious trouble.

Slippery Slope

Ian Dowie has already threatened to leave if the club lose ten points, and their prospects for survival would be slim, especially as they are currently under a transfer embargo.

If they do go down they could join a host of teams all who have been in the Premiership in recent years.

Oldham (last in the premiership - 94), Leeds (04) and Nottingham Forest (99) are all already in League One, and with Norwich (05) and QPR (96) also in the drop zone, it could be high profile league next season.

Coventry were forced into this situation by debts which reached £38mill, and now they must pray someone will save them, otherwise they will begin the all too familiar slide down the leagues into the footballing wilderness.

Baa Baas Batter Boks

Jason Robinson took his final bow on the international stage on Saturday as the Barbarians provided an apt display to shock the weary World Champions.

I was lucky enough to be at Twickenham for his send off and his team did not disappoint.

Right from the off Justin Marshall and Matt Giteau pulled the strings and although South Africa enjoyed sustained periods of pressure the Baa Baas took the lead through Giteau with a straight forward penalty.

He extended their lead soon after with a magical length of the field team try.

After a couple of missed chances from the Barbarians the Springboks finally crossed the whitewash, as Schalk Burger's late replacement Pieterse leaped over the line.

Rocky

That was all the World Champions would get out of the game with Martyn Williams and Rocky Elsom scoring suitably exciting tries either side of half-time to leave the final score 22-5.

In the second half the rain started to lash down and the quality suffered as a result, although the enterprise and adventure never lacked.

And it didn't dampen the atmosphere in the stadium either as Jason Robinson received a rapturous standing ovation.

Following a peerless career in both codes of rugby Robinson produced a vintage performance and helped set up the second try with a trademark jinking run from the loose.