Opinion - Tom Wood as England captain

Tom Wood has let his rugby do the talking, and plaudits to boot. Tom Wood is the next England captain.

Tom Wood’s debut in the 2011 6 Nations opener at the Millennium Stadium against Wales was a dramatic introduction; yet he gave a man-of-the-match type performance. He shone with great work rate and was effective in the loose and at the breakdown. He gets through plenty of the intangibles, the work that nobody traces; the only observable result being an England win.

Tom Wood’s rugby abilities and leadership potential on the rugby field are evidence enough to hand him the captain’s armband. But with rugby experts and fans wanting qualities that rival previous legend captains of the game, delving into his character and life are also that of an England captain.

As a youth, Tom Wood left a position in the Worcester Warriors academy and moved to New Zealand for 2 years; working on a farm and playing New Zealand brand rugby with North Otago. Tom Wood challenged himself in a new and testing environment. He avoided the English academy structure; he wanted to “break the mould”. Who else ventured the same path to New Zealand in their youth? Martin Johnson. In fact Tom Wood confessed he had read his book, and Johnson’s successful time there, was partly his motivation.

Martin Johnson even commented on Tom: "Sometimes a young player comes in and they don't realise how good a player they are." People say that may be Johnson sees himself in Tom Wood; as do others, his teammates referring to Tom as ‘Mini Johnson’.

After the close of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, the public were left asking what happened to England; their attack, their dynamic forward play that resulted with the 6 Nations championship crown? Well Tom Wood played the entirety of the 6 Nations, and held a minor role at the World Cup.

Tom Wood was not used against Argentina, and was not included in the 22 against Scotland and the quarter final with France. He was disproportionately rewarded with a start against Georgia and a substitute appearance against Romania. I am sure there are other factors, but the change in England performances without Tom Wood’s inclusion is apparent.

Outside of the England shirt, he also performed well for Northampton; winning the Aviva Premiership Player of the Year award, and receiving nominations for the RPA’s Players’ Player of the Year and the Young Player of the Year award.  On top of these recognitions of success, his boss Jim Mallinder, the person who knows him best, believes that he has the qualities to be a great England captain. Tom Wood has also received recognition for England captain from England Rugby legend, Lawrence Dallaglio.

Yet his lack of England caps continues to be his story at present; a foot injury keeping him from competing for a starting XV birth against Scotland and Italy. Tom Wood admits this set back has cut him “deep”. It has stopped him having the ‘fresh start’ with the ‘new’ England team. But it will never stop his graft. As quoted by ESPN Scrum:

"For example, I've hurt my foot, but I'll make sure I make some gains in other areas: whether in strength in the gym, overall conditioning, or shoulder stability. I use the anger and put it to good use. I'll take it out on the punch bag in the weights room."

The drive and intensity that moves with Tom Wood, injured or not, is a great thing for English Rugby, and a great asset that you would want in a captain. He’s inner-drive rivals that of Jonny Wilkinson, with a Johnson-esque aura. Tom Wood must be England captain.