Barely a week goes by without English rugby bidding farewell to high-profile personnel and the trend continued in extraordinary fashion yesterday when Matt Dawson was forced to step down from the national squad because he was too busy to attend training.
Judging from the terse reaction of the acting head coach Andy Robinson, who has told the country's most capped scrum-half he will not be recalled until "his priorities change", Dawson may well have played his final Test for England after unsuccessfully asking to be released from the first squad session of the season because he was filming an edition of A Question of Sport for the BBC.
The "What Happened Next?" round will now assume a whole new meaning for England's supporters. Dawson, 31, will forever be remembered for providing the pass which set up Jonny Wilkinson's winning drop-goal in the World Cup final last November but his sense of timing has temporarily deserted him. With Sir Clive Woodward and Lawrence Dallaglio recently departed, yesterday's gathering was a keynote session and Robinson's refusal to cut the Wasps No9 any slack hardly rates as a shock.
"We're both disappointed with the situation but the door is still open for a return at some point should his priorities change," said Robinson, who will privately be seething that a senior player should double-book his diary when the date of England's two-day training camp in Bagshot has been inked in for at least a month. "It's important the England squad makes full use of its training days together."
Having won 65 caps, captained his country to the Six Nations title in 2000 and toured twice with the Lions, Dawson has given England sterling service since his debut in 1995 and was swift to stress yesterday he has not retired from international rugby. "I still want to play for England," he insisted. "Obviously I am disappointed to be out of the EPS [Elite Player Scheme] squad but I understand and respect Andy's decision. I will be working hard to earn my place back. I have a long standing commitment that I simply can't reverse." There are echoes, however, of the infamous 2001 Lions diary controversy in Australia, when Dawson was also guilty of testing the patience of those around him.
The BBC was defensive on the issue yesterday, as well it might be bearing in mind the corporation has the rights to cover the Six Nations in the New Year and would have expected Dawson, a team captain in A Question of Sport, to play a leading role. Dawson may still return to the Elite Player Scheme squad, which is reviewed on January 1, but his two younger rivals, Leicester's Harry Ellis and Gloucester's Andy Gomarsall, now have a clear head start in the ongoing battle to be England's No9.
Dawson has never made any secret of his desire to develop his career in broadcasting and sports marketing when his playing days are over but he must have realised when he approached Robinson with his clash of dates earlier this month that he was treading on dodgy ground. One of Woodward's main complaints as England descended from their World Cup pedestal last season was that too many players had become too distracted by off-the-field issues. Robinson is clearly keen to prevent the same problem resurfacing and Dawson's offer to show up for today's second training day was politely declined.
Already England must soldier on this season without Dallaglio, Martin Johnson, Neil Back, Jason Leonard, Dorian West, Paul Grayson and Dawson's long-time competitor Kyran Bracken, and Dawson's absence will reduce the hard core of experience running down England's spine even further. His new club Wasps will also have mixed feelings; Dawson may now be more available during the autumn international period but, as things stand, Wasps will also have to repay the compensation of £30,000 per man they were due to receive for releasing Dallaglio and Dawson for England duty.
Robinson, meanwhile, says Dallaglio's place in the original 60-man elite squad will be filled "in due course" as England prepare to face Canada, South Africa and Australia at Twickenham in November. The acting head coach's advance planning may also be affected by tonight's RFU disciplinary hearing in Coventry, where Bath's England lock Steve Borthwick faces a charge of punching during his club's comprehensive home defeat by Newcastle 10 days ago.
