Randall responds to critics saying he’s too small

When it comes to perception from others, Harry Randall sees the trust of those around him to be more important than claims that he’s too small to play Test rugby.

Randall dismissed those claims saying: “I’ve heard it a lot before, but I suppose it doesn’t really matter to me what other people think as long as the people around me trust me and that I back myself. Everyone’s going to have an opinion, but I’ve just got to knuckle down and use it to my advantage and be as strong as I can in all areas.”.

Weighing 72kg and being 5”8 in height, Randall is one of the smaller Premiership scrum half’s, and the smallest compared to fellow current England scrum-halves, Ben Youngs and Raffi Quirke. Many experts have been quick to comment on his smaller build, however this hasn’t stopped him from thriving in the Premiership, and now on the international stage.

When speaking about the relationship that the England scrum halves have, he mentions how they all learn from each other.

He said: “We work together a lot, doing a lot of passing and kicking. We’re always learning from each other. Obviously, with Ben Youngs, the most capped men’s international now, it’s pretty awesome learning from him and all his experience. We’ve got a good relationship, we help each other out. We always talk and connect with each other about things.”

He said the key to his success despite critics mentioning his size being a possible limiting factor, has been the people around him. He said: “I have had people previously say that size could be an issue, but like I’ve previously said, I’ve had the right people around me who believe in me. As long as I backed myself and worked hard in areas that I needed to then, I feel like it’s never been a massive issue”

The Berkshire-born scrum half joined the infamous Hartpury College at the age of 17, and then went on to briefly play for Gloucester. During his time in Gloucestershire, he earned places in the England u18 and u20 teams, after previously playing for Wales u16s.

His talent stood out to Pat Lam, which lead to him signing for Bristol Bears in 2018. He’s shined at Bears and has recently signed a long-term contract extension with them.

Making his senior England debut in July 2021, Randall made his first start two weeks ago against Italy ahead of Ben Youngs. In doing so, he lined up against a fellow Hartpury student, Italy’s Stephen Varney.

Where some might say his height could have been an issue in test rugby, his career so far would beg to differ. He has an inner drive to continue to develop his game and prove the critics wrong, saying: “I’m still consistently working hard to get stronger, fitter, faster, which will help me out.”

Written by Imogen Ainsworth