Marcus Smith masterclass has England calling again
“Tonight we saw a masterclass on finding space” said Harlequins head coach Tabai Matson after his sides 40-5 demolition of Exeter at Twickenham Stadium.
“For him to slot back in and find space whether it be run kick or pass just shows you what a rare talent he is.”
Matson was of course talking about Man of the Match Marcus Smith. If it wasn’t already the norm just across the A316 at the Stoop, Big Game 14 at Twickenham Stadium felt even more so like ‘The Marcus Smith Show’.
Omitted from the England training squad this week with fit‑again George Ford included, he was asked by Steve Borthwick to get time in the 10 shirt and to boss a game. Questions over whether Borthwick fully trusted Smith’s abilities having given him a combined nine minutes of game time against Italy and Wales hung in the air, eagerly waiting to be answered.
A kick in the teeth for Smith’s England hopes, or an opportunity for him to show what he can do? His recall to the squad on Sunday evening ahead of France week suggests the latter; perhaps all the furore over a fallow week squad was wasted words. Yet opinion swung both ways on Saturday, and as the footfall of 55,000 headed to their seats there was an air of inevitability that the 24-year-old was brewing something special.
Four minutes in and the glimpses were already there. A long clearing kick from Jack Nowell and Smith was there to regather on his own 22. Sure enough out came the goose step, Marcus Smith darting between the challenges of Nowell and Ian Whitten before tipping the ball to Cadan Murley.
Six minutes later and all became clear. Smith utilised one of his notorious chips over the top to find Andre Esterhuizen in perfect stride, the South African’s final yet pivotal pop pass unleashing Murley to go under the sticks for the opening try.
The raised right hand into the Smith Fist PumpTM was on full display. With that outpour of emotional energy, the fly-half stated his intent for the evenings proceedings.
Smith went on to have a deciding hand in two further first half tries and ended the 80 minutes with 10 points, 13 tackles and 5/6 from the tee.
With a tangible energy and eagerness to get his hands on the ball, it was clear to Quins scrum-half Danny Care that his teammate was always going to lead from the front at Twickenham.
He said: “[Smith] was definitely focused and really motivated to get us a win because we needed one. He had a massive motivation to get the club a win, the club that he loves, and you can see that in the way he plays.
“Over the years I’ve been playing with him I know one thing, he loves Quins. He loves winning, and when he’s on your team you’ve got a better chance than when he’s not. I thought he was brilliant today.
“To have him around the club this week it just gives everyone such confidence. He’s an unbelievable player and I think the tactical display he showed today was exceptional, so anyone questioning can he do that, he definitely can.”
This tactical brilliance was at its finest in the 23rd minute for Josh Bassett’s try where Smith, self-aware of the narrative swarming around him, appropriated it to Quins own end.
Off the back of a maul Esterhuizen stood at first receiver and pulled the ball out the back, a move we’ve seen many times before to unleash Smith in the wide channels. However on this occasion the ball destined for the fly-half’s hands zipped straight passed him and into the claws of Bassett, and with all defenders focused on Smith the winger had plenty of room to run in his fifth of the league season.
That move was an adjustment by Smith himself, Matson revealed at full time.
He said: “It’s really interesting, so I’ve picked up the attack since Snap [Nick Evans] has been away and what we do from mauls I had a bit of a plan in place.
“Marcus comes in and says no, we’re going to do this. So that try was his adjustment on Monday, the ball went past him to set up the try.”
Moments like these are sure to have Borthwick and his team wrangling around the selection table ahead of France on Saturday. Harlequins fourth try saw some brilliant running interplay between Smith, Bassett and Joe Marchant, something that the national side has been lacking so far in the Six Nations.
Care made it very clear that, from his perspective, Smith should be involved in the staring XV.
He said: “I’m not the coach but I think you’ve got to go and attack a French team, I don’t think you can sit back and kick everything. So I’d be picking a team that can play quickly and play aggressive rugby and if I was the coach he’d be in my team.”
Of course, it is easy to be eulogise about Marcus Smith without acknowledging the forwards that set the foundations. Dino Lamb and James Chisolm recorded 22 and 21 tackles respectively while Jack Kenningham and Tom Lawday were immense in the back row.
Care said: “Defensively [it was] one of our best performances of the season. Exeter hold the ball for more phases than anyone in the league, they play some tough, physical rugby and our lads pitched up. I thought our back row was incredible.”
Given the four tries Harlequins scored in just over 20 minutes it’s easy to forget that Exeter were camped on the hosts line for the first ten minutes. If it wasn’t for Wilco Louw’s tackle that dislodged the ball from Scott Sio’s grasp in the 6th minute, the game could have gone in a very different direction.
While some will see Smith’s re-instatement to the Test side as self-evident following this performance, Matson assured that having been to a couple of World Cups with Fiji, he knows Test rugby is a whole other animal. While backing his fly-half all the way to be in the mix on the weekend, it’s worth remembering that a Shaun Edwards drilled France are an entirely different prospect.
