Joe Worsley: 'I know that we beat them, but Italy are a much better team'

Joe Worsley, the England World Cup winner, is revelling in Georgia’s historic victory over Italy in Batumi, but the Lelos defence coach is acutely aware of the work that still needs to be done before they are included in the Six Nations Championship.

The 28-19 win over Italy, the perennial Six Nations whipping boys who ended a 36-match losing run in the competition by beating Wales this year, has focussed attention on Georgia’s burning desire to be allowed to join Europe’s elite competition.

However, Worsley, who has spent the last decade coaching at Bordeaux and Castres, believes there are still crucial “stepping stones” for Georgia to negotiate before they are fully equipped to make the step up to the Six Nations, either through a suggested play off with the bottom team each season or as an extra country.

In Worsley’s view, it is crucial to increase the number of Georgia matches against Tier One nations and to find a viable competition for a new provincial Georgian team (it could be the Currie Cup in South Africa) while helping the Black Lion professional club team move up the European ladder.

Worsley, a member of England’s 2003 World Cup winning squad, helped Georgia at the 2019 Cup in Japan and will have the same defence role at next year’s tournament in France where Georgia will play Australia, Fiji, Wales and the final qualifier in Pool C.

The 45-year-old former back-row forward told RugbyPass: “I cannot explain how massive a win it is and to beat a Tier One nation is enormous for a country with ambition like Georgia and it is a big stepping stone to where they want to get.

“It is too simplistic a view (immediately elevate Georgia to Six Nations membership) of a very complicated decision and Italy are probably a lot further down the line in dealing with professionalism and finding their own model. They have had a lot of issues due to either poor coaching or organisation of the club system and I know that we beat them, but Italy are a much better team now.

“It was huge to have a team like Italy at home and you could feel the nerves because we had lost the week before to an Argentinian XV and I think a lot of the Georgian players were already thinking about the Italian game. It was a massive game with Italy and you could feel the tension around it and there is real joy at winning.

“One day there needs to be an ability to let a team like Georgia (into the Six Nations) in but there are steps before that needs to happen. More Tier 1 exposure is huge for Georgia and there is going to be one of those fixtures in November and then the European Nations competition they take part in followed by warm up games for the World Cup in France.

“Hopefully, there will be a provincial team that enters a competition like the Currie Cup in South Africa but the travelling for that seems mad. They need to find a viable solution that gives the players a constant exposure to a decent level of rugby. On top of that the international team needs as much exposure to Tier One matches as possible.

“The Georgia team is getting better all the time and the launch of the professional Black Lion team has been important but until they get into a full-time professional league that is going to be a tough one. There are a lot of factors including how the players are being trained and the domestic league is probably not competitive enough to prepare players for international rugby.”

Worsley is taking a break from full-time coaching and despite interest from French clubs his rugby focus will be on his consultancy role with Georgia for at least the next 18 months.

So what is it about Georgian rugby that keeps him coming back? “I really love rugby people who are passionate about the game and being part of that environment with Georgia is something I really appreciate," added Worsley who won 78 England caps. “It is that passion for rugby I love.

“I had a wonderful time at Castres (who lost the Top14 final to Montpellier) and also at Bordeaux over ten years in France and it is time for some personal development with a Masters degree course. Club rugby is amazing and I will miss the weekly ups and downs but it is only for a year and half and then I will back into it. There are various offers but I am not going to change my mind.

“I am helping Georgia out on a short-term contract and I will do more nearer the World Cup in France. I have various commitments which means I won’t be with them leading into the Portugal game (next weekend).”

While Georgia are noted for the number of outstanding forwards they produce, Worsley has been impressed with the back line talent that has been emerging from their U20 team which recently hammered Scotland 55-17.

The win over of Italy last weekend saw two brilliant runs from full back Davit Niniashvili who plays his rugby at Lyon and Worsley is excited about his potential. “The guy has some talent at 19-years-old and the high catches for me – the way he spins around the air and places his foot is like a ballerina – are unbelievable.

“Having players in the Georgia backs who can bring that X-factor and break the line is massive and we still have a long way to go for the team before they can hope to regularly win games like the Italy one. All the ingredients are there and now it is about high quality games because there are more and more players coming through to the senior team and there are Georgian people putting in the money to make that happen.

“It is a long term plan and it won’t happen overnight. There is the stereotype about Georgian teams but Italy were strong in the scrum and we have seen the improvement in the Fiji scrum. You really can’t rely on that old stereotype about Georgia forwards anymore. The Georgian U20s have had success and players will push through and it is a good sign.

“Having helped out in 2019 at the Rugby World Cup, I stayed in touch with Levan Maisashvili who is the head coach. He had that terrible experience with Covid.

“At the 2019 World Cup we had players at top teams in France but if you take Georgia rugby as a whole they probably have less experience than other nations and hence they will make some mistakes others don’t make. It is now about getting the experience of high quality games and get their skills on board more quickly.”