Jonny May: England Rugby’s Flyer or Its Liability?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: February 17, 2015

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Jonny May is one of the fastest wingers ever to pull on an England shirt. May’s try against New Zealand in the autumn internationals, when he flew past Conrad Smith and Israel Dagg, was one of the best individual scores seen at Twickenham. But is May worth his England place? Does raw speed atone for deficiencies, or maybe liabilities, elsewhere in his game?



England coach Stuart Lancaster asks a lot of his wingers: They need to be all-round modern players, able to kick and catch as well as run. The catapulting of Anthony Watson into the England fold is based on the Bath man’s complete game but also because he is an elusive runner. To use a phrase that has been rapidly gaining popularity, he covers the basics, and Watson’s feet are his “point of difference.”

On the left wing, May’s “point of difference” is his speed: He is regarded by The Rugby Blog as “easily the quickest player England have had available for some time.” But May has been given an easy time of it in other areas: His defence, kicking and claiming of the high ball are not up to standard.

Lancaster wasn’t willing to countenance Christian Wade on the England wing because of his perceived fallibilities in those departments, but Wade is stronger than May across the board. And Wade side-steps rather than running sideways.

Against Wales, May conceded a needless penalty on the half-way line that gave Leigh Halfpenny an easy three points just minutes into the game. He then got his defensive alignment all wrong for Rhys Webb’s try.

Then, against Italy at Twickenham on Saturday, May also had a very mixed game to say the least. It was a performance that confirmed the analysis above.

On 35 minutes, after Ben Youngs’ break, the ball fell to May on the England right with a clear overlap. May, as is his custom, drifted rather than running straight, and the c...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Rugby Union

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