Forgotten England backrow rebuilt himself after Australian Test episode destroyed his confidence
Teimana Harrison views Sunday’s clash with the Barbarians as a redemptive occasion to prove his worth in an England jersey.
All of Harrison’s five caps were won in 2016, including the final Test of a 3-0 series win in Australia that saw the Northampton back row replaced after only 31 minutes on account of being outmuscled at the breakdown.
The looming non-cap showdown at Twickenham ends a three-year international exile he admits took its toll on his confidence.
“I guess there is a little bit of a point to prove,” said Harrison. “I haven’t had the best run in an England shirt so it would be nice to get out there and put in a good shift with the boys.
“I took a little bit of rebuilding after 2016 but at the time I was focusing too much on ‘I have to do this, I have to make England again’.
“Your confidence does take a hit when something like that happens. You’ve got to get your head down and work yourself out of it.
“So I put England to one side and thought if I played well, my performance would get me there. Worrying about it wasn’t going to do anything.
“I went away and thought ‘If I play well for the club, I may get an opportunity’. I’m quite lucky, I have got an opportunity so it’s time to get my head down and get stuck in.”
Harrison’s preparation for Sunday has been interrupted by the birth of his first child, a boy named Wolfe.
“I’ve been doing a bit of back and forth from Northampton but I’m pretty set on what I’ve got to do, and my missus has backed me so I’m preparing the best I can,” added Harrison.
Exeter boss Rob Baxter talks to the press after his team loses 34-37 against Saracens in the Premiership Rugby final at Twickenham.
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I find these articles so very interesting, giving a much more in depth series of insights than one can ever gain from “desktop” research. It is very significant that it is this English man that Joe Schmidt has turned to build the basement stability and reliability from the WB forwards that was so shredded during the Jones debacle. With his long period in Ireland, with both Leinster and Ireland, Schmidt will know Geoff Parling’s qualities as a player well, and he will have gone over, with a fine tooth comb, the mans time in Australia. This, one feels, will prove to be a shrewd decision. I’m particularly interested in Parling’s comments about the lineout, especially the differences in approach between the hemispheres. He talks about the impact of weather conditions on the type of lineout tactics employed. He is the right man to have preparing for a wet and windy game at Eden Park, the “Cake Tin”, or in Christchuch, or for that matter in Capetown. I must confess to being surprised by this comment though re Will Skelton: “ Is he a lineout jumper? No. But the lineout starts on the ground – contact work, lifting, utilising that massive body at the maul.” Geoff is spot on about the work Will does on the ground. But I would contest the view that he is not a lineout jumper. I think I have commented before on this one, so won’t go further than referring to the end of the last Cup Final in Dublin, LAR using Will on maybe 3 occasions at No 2 in the lineout. And I have seen him used by LAR in Top 14, and never seen him beaten to the catch…but in reality that would only be a total of 10 times max.
Go to commentsDaltons a great guy and can lead at any level with that humility
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