Faith of Saints puts Luther Burrell on fast-track to Twickenham
And the increasingly influential centre would be ready to answer the call by England should the opportunity arise.
Midfield mainstay Brad Barritt has been ruled out of England’s autumn series after undergoing ankle surgery.
Billy Twelvetrees is the favourite to step in but the Gloucester playmaker has made an inauspicious start to the season. Burrell, by contrast, began the campaign on fire, producing man-of-the-match performances against Exeter and Harlequins.
And he looks certain to be in the mix when England boss Stuart Lancaster sifts through his centre options for November.
“I feel a lot more confident about my game now,” Burrell, 25, who toured Argentina with England in June, told The Rugby Paper.
“The coaches have shown a lot more faith in me and I’ve had a good taste of the international scene now as well.
“I’ve always backed my own ability but what I’ve lacked at previous clubs is the backing of my coaches and consistent game time.
“I’ve managed to get that at Saints and, hopefully, the coaches are getting the rewards for giving me these opportunities. It’s fantastic at the moment. We had great wins against Exeter and Quins and there’s a brilliant spirit at the club.
“I enjoyed the summer tour and am chomping at the bit to be amongst it again at international level with England. But to do that I’ve got to be in the Northampton team playing consistently well and that’s my main priority right now.”
Burrell had big boots to fill when he arrived at Franklin’s Gardens as a replacement for the hard-running James Downey. But he has risen to the challenge and looks to be a fixture in the Saints team, despite boss Jim Mallinder’s new rotation policy.
“I hope he never rotates me because I want to stay in the team and keep pushing on,” Burrell said.
“But we have got a lot of strength in depth now and competition for the shirt is always good.”
Saints have put last season’s Premiership final defeat behind them and Burrell is confident they can again reach Twickenham.
He added: “There’s a lot of determination to move on from last season’s disappointment.
“We can’t dwell on that anymore, it’s gone, and if we can get to the final again this season it will be a massive achievement.
“We’ll just take it week by week and, hopefully, we can progress a bit further in the Heineken Cup this season as well.
“As a team we worked very hard in pre-season and we’ve carried that momentum into the season, which is pleasing. We’ve shown good consistency and confidence is very high.”
NEALE HARVEY
