The Harlequins prop Joe Marler has ruled himself out of immediate international contention by withdrawing from England’s tour to Australia and next week’s warm-up Test against Wales. Marler says he does not feel fully prepared to represent his country and has told the head coach, Eddie Jones, he wishes to “recharge his batteries” this summer.
Only last week Marler said he felt lucky to be in contention for the tour after a turbulent few months which saw him pick up two disciplinary bans and seek professional help in an effort to stay calmer under stress during games. After discussions with Jones during England’s current training camp in Brighton, however, the 25-year-old has decided he needs to take a break and focus instead on returning fresh and rejuvenated next season.
“After speaking to Eddie in Brighton I have decided the best thing for me is to take a rest and not go to Australia,” said Marler. “Whenever you play for England you have to be 100% and unfortunately I’m not in that place at the moment. It’s not a decision I’ve come to lightly, but I feel I would be letting my team-mates and my country down if I were to tour. I think a short rest will really help me recharge my batteries so I can start next season with the energy and focus that’s needed to perform at the highest level.”
Jones said Marler would be “a big loss” in Australia but believes that staying at home will prove the right decision in the longer term. “We fully support Joe’s difficult decision and admire his honesty,” said Jones. “Joe knows better than anyone what it takes to be part of a winning international team and he obviously doesn’t feel he’s quite there at the moment. He’s a young man with a very bright future. There’s no doubt in my mind he’ll use this time wisely and come back feeling refreshed and ready to be part of England again.”
Marler, who has won 42 caps for England and has been a regular starter all season, has been seeing the sports psychologist Jeremy Snape after acknowledging he was struggling to control himself on the field. As well as receiving a ban for abusing Wales’s Samson Lee during the Six Nations championship he was also suspended for two months for kicking Grenoble’s Arnaud Héguy last month. “I’m not sitting here saying I have a lot of problems or I’m a complete nut-job,” he said last week. “I’m saying there’s stuff that needs addressing in and out of rugby that I’m now getting hold of.”
With Marler out of the equation, England will have to reshuffle their front row for the three-Test series against Australia. Mako Vunipola is now set to start at loosehead with Wasps’ Matt Mullan likely to be promoted to the bench for the first Test in Brisbane on 11 June. Jones, still unbeaten since taking over as England’s head coach, is due to announce his squad on Sunday.
