Cipriani still holds Lions dream
10 Mar 2009
Wasps flyhalf Danny Cipriani hopes to represent the British & Irish Lions later this year, despite not featuring for his country in the Six Nations.
The 21-year-old was the most-talked about player in English rugby last season, but his international career has faltered over recent months having struggled with injury and a dip in form.
After being thrust back into the England scene shortly after recovering from a horrendous ankle injury last year, Cipriani was dropped for the final November international against New Zealand and hasn’t played for the national side since.
With Martin Johnson choosing not to include Cipriani for the games against Italy, Wales and Ireland, the youngster has been performing well for his club Wasps.
Although helping Wasps climb the English Premiership league table is Cipriani’s main goal right now, he still hopes that he could yet earn a place in the Lions’ touring squad.
“I’ve felt really good in my last four games,” said Cipriani. “A lot of responsibility has been put on me to lead the side and I feel I’ve played a good hand.
“I’m feeling good, I’m feeling strong. I felt I was back to my best a couple of games ago.
“If I’m playing well and they [England] want to pick me that’s great. For me it’s just about playing well for Wasps and hopefully it will happen from there. If I’m playing the best in the country at 10 then hopefully I’ll get picked.
“Is it possible to make the Lions without playing for England first? If I’m performing as well as I can do then I’d like to think so.”
13 Comments
10 Mar 2009, 10:52 am
cmon??
10 Mar 2009, 10:53 am
hope he makes it too…will assist Boks
10 Mar 2009, 10:56 am
boks must find a reliable goal kicker…lets not forget 1997…ruan not kicking for sharks…
10 Mar 2009, 11:06 am
#3 grant10: Play Kockott at scrumhalf. He kicks well for the Sharks.
10 Mar 2009, 13:05 pm
Cipriani is worth at least 5 points for the Boks
10 Mar 2009, 14:16 pm
Dont worry Danny, as long as Stephen Jones of the Times is the main selector, you’ll not only make the squad but be in the starting XV too !
Oh, either him or Ronan O’Gara – Stephen Jones recently said he “was wrong” about O’Gara and that actually he is a star player afterall. Unfortunately this was 2 days before O’Gara couldnt kick a barn door vs England, nearly handing them an undeserving victory, but also doing his usual disappearing act on D and completing eliminating the option of taking the ball up himself. Y’see, Ronan does like to save on washing bills.
So with Cipriani and O’Gara as the Lions no10′s, Stephen Jones shows his complete failure as a rugby journalist but a promising career in comedy.
10 Mar 2009, 14:18 pm
#4 Puma:
Kockott MUST be a good player because Im starting to detest him alot.
Dirty little cheat stopped a clear try vs Cheifs.
And then next game vs Blues he was constantly pushing the boundaries of the rules incl walking a kick up 5metres whilst the refs back was turned.
10 Mar 2009, 14:47 pm
Who cares – fifth rate player in an eigth rate country!
10 Mar 2009, 15:12 pm
tHE PRESS (in London) YESTERDAY WAS FULL OF “THE REASON WE HAVE NOT PICKED IS not BECAUSE OF HIS UNPOPULARITY”. I’m on record last year saying this guy is unpopular and does not gel with other team members. I cant see Johnson playing him soon unless he is desperate. If he plays for the Lions, he will be ironed out quck time by our back row.
10 Mar 2009, 16:12 pm
danny capriati will not make the lions xi unless there are serious injuries
10 Mar 2009, 19:16 pm
A bad attitude does not a Lions tourist maketh:-
Mike Catt, a veteran of 75 England Tests and three World Cups, spoke about the ‘arrogance’ of youth yesterday after his Sunday spat with Danny Cipriani.
‘Maybe the game’s changing and maybe that’s the arrogance of young players, I don’t know,’ said Catt after his Wasps opposite number had refused to shake hands at the end of the Premiership match against London Irish.
‘Before the Six Nations began, I was asked a question: “Do you think Danny Cipriani is playing well enough to be in the England team?” I said no.
‘That’s all I said. I didn’t say he was a bad rugby player. I’ve been criticised numerous times in my career but these young guys don’t really seem to take criticism, not that I criticised him in any shape or form. What he achieved last season was pretty amazing for a fly half and I praised him to the hilt. But he’s not playing well at the moment.
‘If people want to make a big thing of what happened at the end of Sunday’s game, that’s up to them but I’m not. He can do what he wants, I don’t give a stuff. It’s no skin off my nose, believe me. I now understand what Will Greenwood was saying and I understand why Josh Lewsey knocked him out.’
Greenwood has claimed that Cipriani’s omission from the Six Nations is down to a lack of popularity among certain contemporaries within the England squad. Lewsey famously floored his young team-mate with a punch during a Wasps training session last autumn.
Catt said: ‘I’ve been punched and beaten up by a lot of people on the pitch, but I’ve always had a beer with them afterwards. It’s all a little silly but these young pups will learn.
‘I wish we would stop talking about the bloke and start giving column inches to some other fly halves. Sam Vesty of Leicester has probably been the in-form No 10 in the Premiership over the past few weeks, Tom May’s going great guns at Newcastle and Dave Walder’s been fantastic at Wasps.’
The unpopularity theory about Cipriani prompted a predictable reaction yesterday from the England coaching hierarchy. ‘I don’t know where that’s come from,’ said scrum coach Graham Rowntree.
10 Mar 2009, 22:39 pm
What a little boy he is? If i was just Catt I would have laughed in his face , catt has and will achieve a lot more in his career than this little upstart will. I cant believe the amount of press attention this very average player gets, there are so many waht ifs? and wait for a few years! but i cant remember players like Carter, james,larkham and wilkinson ever being floored by someone else in there own team, says it all really!!
11 Mar 2009, 01:28 am
Cipriani is the Gaffie du Toit of English Rugby.
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