{"id":174415,"date":"2025-06-11T01:36:27","date_gmt":"2025-06-11T01:36:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/174415\/"},"modified":"2025-06-11T01:36:27","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T01:36:27","slug":"ill-do-anything-to-play-for-england-even-move-to-no12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/174415\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019ll do anything to play for England \u2014 even move to No12"},"content":{"rendered":"

The task facing Freddie Steward this week is one of keeping his emotions in check, floating as he is somewhere between the euphoria of Leicester Tigers\u2019 semi-final victory last weekend and the higher peak of facing Bath in the Gallagher Premiership<\/a> final this Saturday. <\/p>\n

For a heart-on-sleeve character such as Steward, it does not come easily. \u201cI\u2019m quite an emotional person, so it\u2019s trying to calm myself down rather than hype myself up,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s not easy, because you\u2019re lying in bed trying to get to sleep in the nights before, you\u2019re thinking about scenarios and your mind goes off on one. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m bad with a wandering brain as it is. The night before a game, I\u2019ve moved my bedtime earlier because I know I\u2019m not getting any sleep for a couple of hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Leicester<\/p>\n

Steward was outstanding in Leicester\u2019s semi-final victory over Sale and now faces Bath in the final on Saturday<\/p>\n

SHUTTERSTOCK EDITORIAL<\/p>\n

Playing in the Premiership final is a step up for many club players, and some involved on Saturday have not played in front of anything approaching the 82,000 spectators who will pack the stands at Twickenham. In those circumstances, Steward is grateful for the experiences he has gained from international rugby in learning to cope with the heightened pressure that comes with playing on the grand stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first time you do it, it\u2019s daunting, it\u2019s scary,\u201d Steward says. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t necessarily get any easier, it\u2019s still a huge occasion and it does things to you that you have to try to counteract. But because you\u2019ve been there before and experienced that sort of atmosphere, it certainly helps. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut you wouldn\u2019t want it any other way. You want to play in the big games, in front of big crowds, it\u2019s all massively exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steward was outstanding in Leicester\u2019s semi-final victory over Sale, as he has been throughout a season in which the Tigers have been timing their run to the line, aiming to win a second Premiership title in four years. Under the guidance of Michael Cheika<\/a>, the full back has rediscovered the joy of playing rugby, which had temporarily deserted him last season after he lost his place in the England side and Leicester limped to an eighth-place finish in the Premiership.<\/p>\n

The international picture has not improved greatly this season, with two underwhelming appearances for England, but his consistent excellence at club level should earn Steward a place in the squad to play Argentina and the USA next month, and the chance to rekindle his international career. <\/p>\n

Steward made his England debut at 20 and quickly established himself as one of the finest defensive full backs in the world, with remarkable poise and courage under the high ball. But during last year\u2019s Six Nations Steve Borthwick<\/a>, the England head coach, changed his approach and dropped Steward in favour of the playmaking ability of George Furbank.<\/p>\n

\"Freddy<\/p>\n

Steward was first-choice full back for England in the 2023 World Cup but has fallen out of favour \u2026<\/p>\n

TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER MARC ASPLAND<\/p>\n

\"Cheslin<\/p>\n

\u2026 and he admitted that being side-stepped for a try by Cheslin Kolbe this season dented his confidence<\/p>\n

REX<\/p>\n

In this year\u2019s championship, with Furbank out injured, Marcus Smith and Elliot Daly were picked at No15 ahead of Steward, with the exception of one appearance against Ireland. Steward has remained in Borthwick\u2019s squads, but he has slipped down the pecking order and has begun to consider different ways in which, at the age of 24, he can add to his 36 caps.<\/p>\n

He has worked to sharpen his footwork in defence, recently admitting to The Times that being side-stepped<\/a> for tries against South Africa and Ireland this season had dented his confidence. He has also tried to expand his attacking game, while giving more serious thought to the idea that he might be able to play at inside centre as well as full back.<\/p>\n

England have struggled for some time to find a regular No12 and the idea of moving Steward from No15 into the midfield has been aired by Sir Clive Woodward, among others, arguing that his 6ft 5in, 16st 12lb frame would bring physicality. Steward has held discussions with Borthwick over adding to his repertoire, mindful that he has struggled even to make the replacements\u2019 bench.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had conversations with the coach and they\u2019ve made it clear that versatility is massive,\u201d Steward says. \u201cThat can be the difference between being in that 23 and not, and it\u2019s certainly something I want to try to add to my game. You look at the likes of Elliot Daly, the guy\u2019s mastered three different positions and he\u2019s on his third Lions<\/a> tour this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Michael<\/p>\n

Leicester Tigers head coach Michael Cheika has encouraged Steward to increase his involvement in the game and helped him sharpen his attacking ability<\/p>\n

PA<\/p>\n

While Steward played inside centre at school before shifting to full back, he knows that switching positions at professional level would be far from straightforward, but he is also aware of players such as Jordie Barrett and Jamie Roberts, who have made a similar switch.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a completely different job, you\u2019re thinking about completely different things at No12, but it\u2019d be cool to experience that again,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019ve not thought, \u2018Right, I\u2019m going to switch,\u2019 the focus has been very much on playing full back the best I can. But if that is my way back in [to England], I\u2019ll certainly explore that. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever I need to do to get back in that 23, whether it\u2019s learning new positions, playing No12, I\u2019ll take that with both hands. It\u2019s adding strings to my bow. Being versatile is definitely something I can add.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the same time, his quest to become a fully rounded No15 continues to gather pace. Cheika and Peter Hewat, the Tigers\u2019 backs coach and a former full back have encouraged Steward to increase his involvements in the game and the work he has done to sharpen his attacking ability has been bearing fruit. In the Premiership this season, only four players (and only one back) have carried more times and only five players have beaten more defenders.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had gym programmes tailored to improving that explosiveness, power and acceleration, I knew I needed to make developments, so that\u2019s been a real focus and I\u2019ve definitely seen it transfer on to the pitch this season,\u201d he says. \u201cBut it\u2019s also been the enjoyment thing. A year ago, I sort of fell out love [with the game]. The new coaches here, they free me up. I\u2019m being braver, wanting to get on the ball more and try things I probably wouldn\u2019t have previously.\u201d <\/p>\n

He has enjoyed, too, the often unorthodox methods that Cheika, in his one-year stay at Welford Road, has been employing to get the best out of his team. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s such a great motivator,\u201d Steward says of the Australian head coach. \u201cHe talks quite a lot about mindset, which is quite rare for a coach \u2014 usually coaching is more about tactics and game plans. He talks about how we need to get up for the game and that can be the difference in big matches. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut he also knows the right time not to be serious. My favourite thing he\u2019s done was one Monday morning, he came into our team meeting and brought out a bottle of Captain Morgan rum. We all had a drink together, I couldn\u2019t believe it, never in a million years did I imagine being in an environment where we\u2019d do that. He\u2019s so good at those little things that bring us together.\u201d<\/p>\n

That ability to coax the best out of players has helped Steward visibly rediscover his zest and the Tigers regaining their belief to reach the Premiership final. After that, there is the prospect of Steward reviving his England career in Argentina, perhaps even with the intriguing possibility that he will be given the chance to experiment at No12. <\/p>\n

\u201cI want to get this week right first,\u201d he says. \u201cWhatever happens after that, I\u2019ll be ready to rip into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gallagher Premiership final<\/p>\n

Bath v Leicester Tigers
Twickenham
Saturday, 3pm
TV <\/b>ITV1 & TNT Sports 1<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The task facing Freddie Steward this week is one of keeping his emotions in check, floating as he…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":174416,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4102],"tags":[4151,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-174415","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-rugby","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114662171296063383","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/174415","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=174415"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/174415\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/174416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=174415"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=174415"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=174415"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}