Dylan Hartley – the New Captain of England’s Rugby National Team

Dylan Hartley has been recently appointed the new captain of England‘s Rugby Union, replacing Chris Robshaw, who occupied this position since 2012. The decision was made public by the current head coach Eddie Jones, during a press conference organized for announcing England’s squad for the forthcoming RBS Six Nations championship.
Upon hearing the news, Dylan declared that: “It is a huge honour to captain England and a very proud day for me and my family”.
Facts about Dylan Hartley’s Career
Dylan Hartley was born in New Zealand on March 24, 1986. In 2002, he moved to Crowborough, East Sussex and started playing rugby for various local teams. In the summer of 2005, Dylan joined the Senior Academy of Northampton Saints. Four years later, Hartley was made captain and became the youngest Premiership captain ever.
However, the Saints lost the 2011 Heineken Cup Final and also the 2013 English Premiership Final before winning the 2014 Premiership final against Saracens. In this context, Dylan Hartley is no rookie and has plenty of experience as a captain in major tournaments.
In December 2014, Northampton Saints announced that Hartley had extended his contract for 3 more years.
England National Rugby Union Team
Dylan made his debut as a replacement for England in 2008, during a match against the Pacific Islanders and had his first start for England against Argentina at Old Trafford in June 2009. So far, he has made 66 test appearances in which he scored five tries.
When it was announced that he’s to become England’s new captain, Hartley declared that he is determined to push the English team forward and that he shares this challenge with his teammates:
“I’m really excited about the challenge ahead but, in reality, leading this squad of players will not fall just to me.”
“It is essential to the success of this team that we quickly develop and establish a strong leadership group. There are a number of guys in this squad who will all have important leadership roles to play so we can take this team forward.”
Harley’s Disciplinary Record
For many fans, the decision of naming Dylan Harley as England’s new captain comes as a surprise considering his long disciplinary record. Throughout his career of 10-and-a-half years, Dylan was banned from playing rugby for a total of 54 weeks. That’s a full year!
Looking at his disciplinary record, we find some of the reasons for his multiple bans: 26-week ban for eye-gouging, 8-week ban for biting, 2-week ban for punching, 11-week ban for verbally abusing a referee, 3-week ban for elbowing and 4-week ban for head-butting. What a combative fellow! Due to his disciplinary record, Harley was forced to miss the 2013 British and Irish Lions tour and the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
In his defence, Eddie Jones declared that: “Dylan is an honest, hardworking bloke and I admire his aggressive and uncompromising approach to playing rugby. Together with Steve and Paul, we think he has all the qualities needed to lead this group of players. We look forward to working very closely with him to build a successful England team.”
During a press conference, Eddie also mentioned that his choice of naming Hartley as England’s new captain is part of a strategy to get back the fear about the team’s forward play.
The Impact on Sports Betting
England has won the Six Nations Championship Title outright 26 times. However, the last trophy was won in 2011 and this change in leadership might be exactly what the team lacks as England’s playing style, at the 2015 Rugby World Cup, was described as too nice. Furthermore, appointing an experienced captain with an aggressive attitude might be the right ingredient for a winning team. Sports bettors should take this aspect into account when placing their bets.
With the upcoming Six Nations Championship, we also recommend bettors to compare rugby union betting odds with various bookmakers. Statistics show that placing bets with the best odds can increase profits on your winning tickets by 20% or more.
It will be interesting to watch how Dylan Hartley handles the responsibilities of his new position as England plays against Scotland in the 2016 Six Nations Championship next week, on February 6.