By Mally (04/03/03)
March 4 2003

With Martin Johnson out injured Newcastle Falcons' Jonny Wilkinson has been handed the England captaincy for the upcoming match against Italy. Is he the right man for the job? Although still only 23, Jonny is not the youngest England captain ever, that honour fell to Will Carling who first led out England at the age of 22. However Jonny's age is not the reason why some people are questioning Clive Woodward's choice. Woodward has described his choice as a "huge honour" for Jonny and a "a challenge he will relish". Is it a challenge too far?

Without wanting to denigrate Wilkinson's ability, can he really captain England from the fly-half role? As one Falcons fan has already expressed his doubts on this site's Message Board.

"Congratulations to Jonny. I'm sure he will value the honour. However, I am very doubtful about whether fly-half is the best position from which to captain an international side, given the amount of decisions he already has to take. And having a scrum-half that can't pass and an inside centre who's a novice at that position can't make it any easier." (Alas)

Even the man who appointed Jonny as Newcastle's captain has expressed similar concerns, The Telegraph has quoted Rob Andrew as saying that the England captaincy is "probably something he (Wilkinson) could do without for the time being", Andrew's concern is there is a "danger of putting too much pressure on Jonny".

While believing that Jonny will cope ("as ever") with the demands of the England captaincy, Rob explains his concerns:

"He has enough on his plate as it is. Jonny has to run the show from fly-half and also deal with his goal-kicking.

I don't think people appreciate how draining and emotional goal-kicking can be. There is now massive expectation on Jonny every time he goes out to play for England. He's expected to score points.

He does, of course, captain us at Newcastle and you can see how seriously he takes the role. Being captain of England is another thing entirely. He'll love to do it, and he'll want to do it well, and one day he will grow into it. He probably won't thank me for saying it but, at the moment, the captaincy could prove a bit of a burden"

Wilkinson was originally appointed England Vice Captain, along with Phil Vickery for the 2002 autumn internationals, he retained the Vice Captaincy for the 6 Nations, and many pundits see his appointment to Captain in martin Johnson's absence as a natural progression.

Mark Souster in The Time described it as "a tantalising glimpse of the not-too-distant future", obviously seeing Wilkinson as the heir apparent.

"The appointment carries with it a certain inevitability. After all that he has achieved, this was the next step, part of the grooming process in preparation for life after the World Cup, which is likely to mark Johnson’s swansong and signal the start of the Wilkinson era"

While some fans and even his own Director of Rugby are concerned that this honour is just putting additional responsibility and pressure on Wilkinson, Jonny seems to be taking it in his stride.

"It is something that makes me stop and think and wonder what it is going to be like. I am a bit hesitant in that respect. But it is something I was enormously keen to say I had done. It has been something I have often thought about, more so the more I have become involved in the England set-up.

"The team is full of experienced leaders all used to taking responsibility. Under Martin Johnson, we have always played as a group of leaders and I am going to require that same group to be there."

Thinking back a few years I used to sit and watch England matches through my fingers, nervously watching this very young lad kick goals and tackle anything that moved, marvelling at how someone so young could handle the pressure.

The amount of additional pressure the England captaincy puts on Jonny is a huge concern, but if the there is ever a time to try out a new captain it is now. With the World Cup coming up this year, Clive Woodward will want to know exactly what options he has in case of injury. Woodward has tried the Charlie Hodgeson - Jonny Wilkinson combination. It was rumoured that Wilkinoson would be rested for this match and Charlie Hodgeson would wear the number 10 shirt, this obviously is not going to happen. It will be interesting to see if Woodward changes his centres now that Jonny is captaining the side. Will Greenwood moving to 12, and bringing in another Falcon Jamie Noon at 13 is one possible option.

It's now 2003, and despite being only 23 years old in England terms Wilkinson is a veteran, and if England winning the World Cup comes down to a last minute penalty kick then I know who I want to see step up to the kicking tee. An outstanding talent at 18, Wilkinson has improved further over the years, and the next step has to be the England captaincy.

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RFU announcement

The Telegraph

The Times