Ben Earl has urged organisers to rethink the Nations Championship schedule after England’s demanding travel across three continents during the inaugural competition.
Steve Borthwick’s side remain in contention for a place in the final at Twickenham on 29 November after beating Argentina on Saturday, but Earl believes the physical toll of the tournament has exposed flaws in its current format.
England covered almost 42,000km in four weeks, travelling between Johannesburg, Liverpool and Santiago del Estero for Tests against the Springboks, Fiji and Argentina.
“It’s been brutal, there’s no two ways about it,” Earl said.
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“It’s been a tough way of ending what’s been quite a long season anyway. It’s been back and forth, coming back to England, seeing your families and then going away again. It has seemed a bit weird, but it’s something we’re going to have to get used to.”
The England No 8 suggested staging clusters of matches in a single host nation rather than sending teams across multiple continents.
“We’ve been speaking about it. Why would we not all be playing in one country? You just go to one nation and have that festival feel,” he said.
“I don’t know the financials, but how good would that be for the fans? I’m not paid to make those decisions. We just get told where to go and where to play.”
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The relentless travel also limited England’s preparation. “You just don’t do as much training,” Earl explained.
“You train a little bit later in the week and you train harder, closer to the game.”
Despite the logistical challenges, the Saracens loose forward insists the demands disappear once the match begins.
“I love playing for my country,” he said. “Once you get to the stadiums and into a warm-up, everything else pales into insignificance.”
Photo: David Rogers/Getty Images
The post England star slams Nations Champs format appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Ben Earl has urged organisers to rethink the Nations Championship schedule after England’s demanding travel across three continents during the inaugural competition.
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