YOUNG GUNS
LEICESTER & ENGLAND U20s CENTRE
Joseph Woodward hopes to turn himself into an all-round rugby player by learning off the multitude of experience in the Leicester midfield.
Centre Woodward, 19, has made four appearances for Leicester in the Premiership Cup this season and despite his side failing to progress past the pool stages he has enjoyed making his Tigers debut and continues to develop whilst at the club.
He said: “Coming through the academy was tough and really good for me in terms of my rugby development but having my first pre-season under Steve (Borthwick) was a massive step forward intensity wise and a real eye opener to what professional rugby is like. It urges me to push on and make my senior debut. Being in and around the lads is really helpful and it helps me develop with senior lads who I look up to that mentor me.
“The Prem Cup was good, not the results we wanted but in terms of development for us all it was really good. Running out at Welford Road was pretty special, so I’m looking for the next opportunity I get.”
The former England U18s captain has formed a sensational centre partnership alongside Reiketi Maasai-White in the ongoing U20s Six Nations, with the pair starting all three of the games so far.
He said: “It’s been good to have him outside me, he’s so good in defence and in attack he’s always going to get past the gain line. I feel pretty comfortable when he’s next to me and he’s also a great lad off the pitch. We’re building a relationship nicely, so it’s going well.
“It’s been really good playing against all the best players from all the nations. The match against Italy was especially tough as they were really prideful and passionate. The biggest step up has been the physicality and I’m enjoying that side of it as well.”
As a former fly-half, Woodward is a natural playmaker but is looking to improve on his defensive work.
He added: “My distribution is my strongest part at the moment. Seeing the space from the second ball player, I’m looking at the outside channels and being able to feed that into the 10. Whether it’s run, pass or kick, I’ve been working on all three of those aspects. Being a second ball player gives me the ability to look for that space and keep putting the team in the right part of the pitch.
“I’m trying to work on everything as I want to become an all-round rugby player but I would like to bring a bit more physicality in defence and for it to be known as a strength of mine. I’ve worked pretty hard with the defence coaches like Matt Everard at Tigers and a couple of the back rowers have also helped make my defence more physical.”
Leicester fielded the oldest backline in Premiership history last weekend in their 24-18 victory over Saracens and Woodward says he enjoys learning off the club’s abundance of experienced players.
He said: “Having Jimmy Gopperth as an experienced head helping me out in training is like having an extra coach which is really helpful. It’s a really good place to be with all the experience; we’ve got Ben Youngs who brings another experienced voice and with the likes of Handre Pollard as well it makes Leicester a great place to be.”
