Nick Cain: Andy Farrell can bring Sam Burgess up to speed – at centre
When Burgess arrived in in Bath this week he did so bathed in the afterglow of his outstanding achievements in the Australian NRL with the South Sydney Rabbitohs. However, that illustrious chapter in his career is closed, and the factor that will dictate how well he adapts to Rugby Union with his new club – and, hopefully, his country – will be how well he is coached.
There is no question that Burgess is as intelligent as he is engaging, and his willingness to learn cannot be in question given his decision to leave Rugby League while at the height of his powers. Burgess leaves Rugby League as its biggest name, respected in Australia as the game’s outstanding player.
That makes coaching him a fantastic proposition, especially for England assistant coach Andy Farrell and Bath director of rugby Mike Ford. However, the concern is that although Burgess’ cross-code move had been finalised months ago the debate about where Bath are going to play him does not appear to have moved on one iota.
This seems a massive oversight given the potential dividend to England of having the fast-moving 6ft 5in, 18 stone 7lb Burgess fully primed, with the aim of fast-tracking him into England’s 2015 World Cup squad. While Burgess has said that he was fully focussed on winning an NRL title for the Rabbitohs over the last few months, as ex-Rugby League players with a unique insight into cross-over demands given their new careers in Union coaching, Ford and Farrell have had plenty of time to get their heads together to work out a coherent plan of action.
The indications are that this simply hasn’t happened. The England coaching heirarchy of head coach Stuart Lancaster and Farrell have made it clear that they see Burgess at 12, but at this week’s unveiling of Burgess at The Rec, Ford suggested Bath still see him in the backrow.
With Bath having funded Burgess’ move to England in its entirety thanks to the depth of owner Bruce Craig’s pockets – and Craig aggrieved that the RFU withdrew financial assistance that had been promised – the club have made their position regarding where Burgess plays clear. Put plainly, it’s ‘he who pays the piper calls the tune’.
How long did it take the Aussies to get double-cross-coder Israel Folau up to running speed? He was in a Wallaby jersey in months rather than years. One of English rugby’s most glaring flaws is a constant “jam tomorrow” outlook from coaches, promising great things at some point down the line – a line that is as prone to delays as weekend rail – rather than making sure it’s done now.
Burgess’ break clause with the Rabbitohs is for three years, so if Union does not get the best out of him he could well be back in Rugby League before 2019. No-one knows better than Farrell how difficult it is for a League loose forward or second row to adapt to life in the Union backrow because he has been there and done it. There is no equivalent in League of the tight-loose territory of breakdowns and driving play which Union backrow forwards inhabit, or of the set-piece duties that are second nature to anyone who has played there for years.
Farrell’s backrow learning curve was painful, and the experiment was curtailed after a couple of painful games for Saracens seconds – after which he moved to inside-centre. The most notable of these was against Harlequins when his lack of know-how in blindside defence off the scrum was savagely exposed.
Bath’s approach appears to be governed not so much by what position Burgess would find it easiest to adapt to – which with its similarities to League in carrying the ball over the advantage-line and off-loading is unquestionably inside-centre – but by short term thinking, and the prospect of solving two problems at the same time. The first is that they have an injury crisis in their backrow, and Burgess can plug one of the many holes.The second is that if Burgess moves to the backrow there is no danger of Kyle Eastmond feeling that his No.12 jersey is under threat from the big newcomer.
Ford says that he intends to assign the injured Francois Louw to Burgess as a backrow mentor. The idea is that Bath will use what they call their “padded cell” at their Farleigh House gymnasium for the Springbok flanker to give Burgess breakdown tutorials. Ford said, “The guys can take Sam to one side in there and teach him how to present the ball, how to clear-out.”
However good a teacher Louw is, and however good a pupil Burgess is, it is a huge ask for a League convert to get to grips with the decision-making complexities involved in being a Premiership backrow forward in a season – let alone start to compete with the likes of Kieran Read and Duane Vermeulen on the Test stage.
If Burgess is to play in the 2015 World Cup the obvious decision is to put him at No.12 shirt and start to maximise on his gifts from the get-go.
And if Ford wanted to enlist the help of a specialist coach who will have time to help out after the autumn series is over he need look no further than Farrell.
*This article was first published in The Rugby Paper on November 2.
