Andy Saull: Newcastle Falcons won’t stifle me like Saracens

Flanker Andy Saull admits he signed for  Newcastle to stop his career stagnating in Saracens‘ regimented environment.
Long seen as the nearest thing England have to a classic openside in the mould of a David Pocock, Saull’s progress has been curbed by a combination of injuries and the rise of Will Fraser, which have restricted him to four starts in the Premiership this season.
Yet there was also a feeling that Saull’s style no longer fitted the Premiership leaders’ template and the 24-year-old told The Rugby Paper that it will be a relief to be given the freedom to express himself.
He said: “Saracens play in an incredibly structured way, whereas I like to play a bit more heads-up rugby and take a few chances, which is a big no-no for Saracens.
“Saracens’ game-plan is pretty much flawless, but it is very regimented. For a team it is unbelievably effective.
“It makes them incredibly difficult to beat but for the individuals there are certain parts of the game you have to sacrifice and are unable to shine.
“The fundamentals are set in stone. This is how it is done and this how you do it. They have got game-winners there and for me it would be nice to have a freer role.
“Newcastle told me they want their opensides to be more instinctive and play what they see, which is what I wanted to hear.
“I want to get back to my glory days and showcasing the passing and offloading aspects of my game.”
The other big attraction of joining the Falcons was the opportunity to rekindle his relationship with forwards coach John Wells, who mentored him through the England age-group system.
And Wells has no doubt that Newcastle can help unlock a potential that could make him England’s premier No.7.
“There is a big question mark about Chris Robshaw, who I think is a wonderful player but is not a seven at the highest level, which has been shown by the Lions selection this week,” Wells, the former England forwards coach, said.
“When you look elsewhere, Steffon Armitage has his supporters but he took himself out of the equation moving to France.
“Then you look at the next crop and Andy is not just as good as anybody but better than anybody on his day.
“Sometimes you can have too many quality players in one position and I think that was the case at Saracens, where Andy just could not get back into the frame once he was injured.”
With captain Will Welch occupying the No.7 berth at present, Saull knows there will be no guarantee of a first-team berth at Kingston Park.
However, Saull is confident that once he gets his chance, he will not let go of it.
He said: “No coach can guarantee game-time but you need to back yourself. I just want a chance to rediscover my form.
“If I get game-time I am confident I can show what I can do. The two times I got a run of ten games together with Saracens I was being talked about for England.
“If I get that game-time I’ll get my confidence back to show what I can do. I want to get back to the point where I was keeping Tom Wood at blindside for the England Saxons when Stuart Lancaster was in charge. He knows as well as anyone what I can do if I’m called upon.
“I’ve played 120 games by the age of 24 – at that age Ernst Joubert was not playing professionally and Mourtiz Botha was cleaning carpets and look at what they’ve gone on to achieve.
“It’s not like I’m at the end of the road, I’ve got, hopefully, another ten years in me and I’ve already got that start behind me.
“I’m a third of the way through what I want to achieve and I just needed a fresh challenge.”
DANIEL SCHOFIELD