Lewsey first name on Sir Clive's list

14 April 2012

Andy Robinson may have forbidden any mention of the 'L' word but all the upbeat stuff emanating from HQ following Twickenham's Six Nations afterthought on Saturday suggested he believes England's late bloomers are ready to make up for their championship underachievement by helping the Lions roar this summer.

The England coach was relentlessly positive after his side's 43-22 triumph over Scotland. It was an entertaining but chaotic affair following all the historic stuff in Cardiff yet he steadfastly refused to respond to criticism from luminaries like Rob Andrew that he should be leading England in the Churchill Cup this summer instead of being on Clive Woodward's staff.

Instead, the 'L' word Robinson chose was leadership as he put a gloss on England's poor tournament by suggesting that the real boon had come in the discovery of some driving figures to fill the void left by Johnson, Dallaglio and Co.

By highlighting his delight that captain Jason Robinson and his stand-in Martin Corry, Lewis Moody, Ben Kay, hat-trick scorer Jamie Noon and even the muchmaligned Charlie Hodgson had been "the leaders who've emerged", he hardly needed to espouse Lions claims.

With Woodward reiterating his plans to take a "decent England contingent" among his 44-strong army to New Zealand, this sextet may all get the nod.

Then you have a fresh claim from Bath's versatile young prop Matt Stevens, the belated reawakening of Joe Worsley and the regeneration of Steve Thompson as a happy hooker. Matt Dawson's striking cameo when replacing Harry Ellis also screamed, 'Don't forget me'.

Add the prospect of world champions like Jonny Wilkinson, Will Greenwood, Mike Tindall, Julian White and Richard Hill coming under consideration and throw into the mix golden oldies Neil Back and Lawrence Dallaglio and do not be surprised to see all prophesies of an England-depleted tour confounded by Woodward.

Frankly, the first England name on Woody's list ought to be Josh Lewsey, who never seems to have a bad game in white and must have pushed Noon for the man-of-the-match award.

Corry, who has done a considerable job in restoring purpose and confidence after a trio of deflating defeats, did his best not to get carried away by the thought of a call from Sir Clive, insisting he could not think further than "a couple of beers and Leeds away".

"It's not a Lions issue but an international issue," the captain said. "Whatever happens with the Lions happens but all we can focus on is what happens for England, and the players have really stepped up to the mark."

It is to be hoped they can do the same in the fabled red shirts.

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Lewsey first name on Sir Clive's list

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