Jeremy Guscott’s column: Still time for Sam Burgess to prove his vast potential

The big word is that Sam Burgess will get a place in Stuart Lancaster final World Cup squad.  It’s big news given that Sam has played only 16 games of Rugby Union since his arrival at Bath last October, playing at centre and blindside flanker.
England are selecting him as a centre, where he’s played only a handful of games compared to his rivals for that slot.
I ask myself if I would pick him ahead of Kyle Eastmond, Billy Twelvetrees or Henry Slade, keeping in mind I could utilise Owen Farrell as an inside centre as well. Twelvetrees has been given enough opportunities to make the 12 shirt his own but hasn’t really made it fit convincingly.
Eastmond in my book has the potential to be England’s own Matt Giteau – his skill set would allow this, it’s about who he plays for as to where those abilities can be set free. The likely make-up of England’s backline means Kyle’s abilities don’t quite suit England’s style.
Henry Slade has a compelling case because his form, like Eastmond, last season was brilliant. He showed up against the best the Premiership has to offer and held his own. His skill set would suggest he has the ability, it’s his mental strength that’s the unknown and will only be found out if he’s given the opportunity.
In terms of balance Slade fits, he can play inside or out, he has a kicking game, his defence is adequate if not bruising, his distribution is solid and his game management sound. With Brad Barritt or Luther Burrell at 12 you would have Jonathan Joseph at 13 and Slade as the option covering 12/13 and fly-half as well.
When it was known Burgess was coming to Union the chat was – would he get in the England squad to play in the World Cup? I did say back then I thought his skill set would mean he would make it but I believed his performances would be more convincing that I’ve seen so far.
The transition has taken longer by his own admission. A lot of his timing is off as he adjusts to the Laws and new players around him. His instinct for another set of Laws – League – has been hard to overcome. The breakdown was an area that looked confusing for him at the start and when he got involved he looked a bit lost, as if he had sailed into the Bermuda Triangle.
Bath’s decision to switch him to blindside was genius, his learning curve spiked. Being more involved in the action was what he needed, playing time was his fuel not having game time was his kryptonite.
In League, he was an all-action hero, playing centre in Union was only a bit-part, playing blindside gave him the action he needed to develop.
If you’ve ever watched ‘Slammin’ Sam’ on YouTube you get a good understanding of the person he is. No-one could doubt his pedigree as a human being, the unconditional caring of his father and his super human exploits playing Rugby League make him a special person in and out of the rugby community. Culturally, he fits the Stuart Lancaster template of how an England international should go about his work.
He dominated League games with his performances. He looked like Captain Invincible at times and was an inspirational leader. In either code as a player, you can’t be influential just by what you say. That has to be supported by top end performances, which gives you the credibility to be a leader.
Sam’s got it hard because of the reputation he arrived with combined with people’s expectations but he knows all that. He’s shown in the past how tough he is mentally, to have his kind of fortitude can’t be coached, that’s his inner strength, his natural gift, it’s inspiring and also infectious.
If – and this is the crux of the situation – Sam has managed to grasp the timings of Union during these last four weeks of intense training with England then he’s the right selection for England. Traditionally England have had a very competitive set of forwards, a fly-half who is tactically astute with an inside centre hard in defence who can get over the gain line consistently.
At 6ft 5ins and around 18 stone, with his skill set Sam can do that job – it’s whether he could do it better than Burrell or Barritt because England surely don’t need three of the same. One area that has been missing in his performances to date that I thought would be his trade mark is defence.
I’ve not seen the big hits yet from Sam which is a surprise, tackling is staple in League and Union but he’s found that bread and butter skill difficult to transfer. If he masters that his impact would be substantial and a must within any team.
If I imagine a fully-transitioned, revved-up Burgess playing at 12 standing between George Ford and Jonathan Joseph that would be a formidable midfield. With Ford’s management and game brain there isn’t a better player within the England set-up to bring out the best in Burgess. The options available to colleagues of a hard-running off-loading Burgess is exciting to say the least and difficult for opposition to defend against.
I say roll the dice and congratulate Lancaster in going with his instinct to select Burgess in the first place, it would have been easier to leave him out than include him. I wouldn’t play him alongside Slade or Danny Cipriani because he has a stronger connection with Ford and Joseph, that scenario will get the very best out of him.
Winston Churchill said, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” England have a couple of warm up games before the final cut is announced and have time to make the right decision on Sam Burgess.