Sir Clive Woodward: Maro Itoje has ‘gone to another level’ and ignores ‘massively overrated’ trait as he pushes for Lions captaincy
Sir Clive Woodward has hailed Maro Itoje after his 'overdue' promotion to England captain.
Former England head coach Sir Clive Woodward has hailed Maro Itoje after his ‘overdue’ promotion to captain of the team ahead of the Six Nations.
Itoje took over the leadership from clubmate Jamie George before the start of the tournament and led his side to victories over France and Scotland, ending England’s Calcutta Cup drought with the latter win.
Woodward does not believe it is a coincidence that England’s two narrow victories have come with Itoje and George being on the field in the final quarter.
Itoje’s captaincy
In a column dedicated to the England lock’s performances and leadership, the ex-head coach hailed his upswing in form and manner in which he has led the team.
“His elevation to captain ahead of Jamie George at the start of this year was a big decision for Steve Borthwick to make as head coach. It was also the right call and overdue,” he wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“Itoje has been outstanding. He’s taken it all in his stride. There have been no headlines about whether or not he’s the right man for the job. Huge credit to him for that.
“Most importantly, his individual performances have grown with the captaincy. His steals were instrumental against Scotland and I would say he was ultimately the difference against France too.”
Woodward has repeatedly expressed that he believes that captains are vitally important in the latter stages of Test matches which led him to suggest that Dylan Hartley and George should have been replaced in the captaincy role during their stints.
He revisited the topic again and stated that because Itoje plays the entire match, he is a better fit for the captaincy.
“As I said, you can’t be taking off your captain then. That’s why Itoje is a great choice for England. In the games that matter he is guaranteed to play the 80 minutes,” he added.
Lions captaincy and overrated trait
Woodward also believes that Itoje’s imposing size does no harm either and neither does his less aggressive and polite tone.
“There’s one final thing I like about Itoje. He’s calmly spoken. There is no shouting and swearing. In fact, I can’t even imagine Itoje ever using bad language!” he added.
“There can be a time and a place for that but I think it’s massively overrated in international rugby. Concise, clear messaging is what’s required and it’s what Itoje has been delivering.”
With the Lions tour to Australia fast approaching, Woodward hopes that Itoje can lead England to another pair of positive results with Italy and Wales to come.
If he does just that, the former coach believes that he will be in a prime position to lead the British and Irish Lions later this year in what would be his third tour.
“If he does that, England may end up in title contention and it could push Itoje into contention to be Lions captain this summer,” he wrote.
“Ireland’s Caelan Doris is the favourite to take on that role Down Under for his usual national-team head coach Andy Farrell. It is hard to argue against that, but Itoje would do a brilliant job if selected. He has gone to another level in this Six Nations.”
