Jack Nowell and James O'Conner

Both players stand at 5ft11 weighing around the 14 stone mark. But the comparisons don't end there. O'Conner has predominately played most of his rugby at full back and on the wing, but has equally impressed when he has featured at fly half or in the centres. Nowell can also fill in on a number of positions, including full back and wing. However, it's in the back three that I feel both players are most effective, bringing their unpredictability and vision all over the pitch. There only main differences are their experience and the fact O'Conner is an internationally competent goal kicker.

Both have a lot of explosive power and always look dangerous on the counter-attack. Neither are the fastest, but they aren't slouches either, possessing a very dangerous step and burst of speed . Both players are solid in defence and love to get their hands on the ball, whilst their distribution is also top quality. I think these Autumn internationals represent a huge opportunity for Nowell. He looks set to start on the right wing against New Zealand and I'm hoping if we can utilise his skills, he'll make a difference against the top sides.

So what do you think? Can Nowell be our JOC?

My answer is Yes, but preferably without the baggage...

I haven't seen Nowell, so I can't comment on him. O'Connor is a selfish player, although talented he is not a great flyhalf at all, without a doubt in my mind he belongs in the back three, his individual skill is much more impressive than his ability to lead a backline.

James O'Connor at his best was one of the most exciting back three players in Int rugby, again on form he was also a quality centre. He was always a pretty average 10 though.

It's a real shame he's let off field cr*p and what seems like a real immature streak get in the way of the rugby, but since getting out of the gold fish bowl of Oz he seems to have chilled out a bit, hopefully for good.

I think you're overegging Jack.

He's not that adaptable, or, at least, not proved to be. Fullback for most of his U20 and break-through rugby, wing at elite level. He played 13 a couple of times for Exeter A team, but that's about it.,

It's only in the last year or so that he's shown much inclination to pass the ball, although his recent 2 try assists against London Irish showed good awareness of his support and timing of the pass.

He is a strong runner though, and more elusive than often given credit for - his stats for defenders beaten, clean breaks and metres made are usually pretty good.

Having said that, he's been playing with a congenital knee defect for the last few years. Now that's been fixed (hopefully) we'll see what he can do with two good legs and a step off both.

He's a pretty grounded and assured young man, so I don't anticipate baggage as a problem.

I'm failing to see the comparison myself, Nowell will never be anywhere near the level of JOC.

i really like jack nowell. but i dont think he has the quality of JOC. certainly not yet.

nowell lacks finishing pace or a killer step. good at returning the ball from infield kicks, but he's not a proper winger. was picked there for his defensive qualities, and he hardly missed a tackle all 6Ns so fair play to Lancaster for casting him in that role.

but i would rather see Roko or May or Yarde on the wing in the AIs.

i was unaware of his long term knee problem. he needs an extra step of pace if he's going to play wing for England. i can see him pushing Brown for the 15 jersey in a couple of years.

By all accounts through the summer he has added a considerable amount of pace and bulk.

I like Jack Nowell...i think he could be a very good possibilty for England. He's only young...probably more suited to FB...but i wouldnt have a qualm about him on the wing for us temporarily until one winger or another actually stands up.

Torygraph article on Nowell last month:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/premiership/11124250/Exeter-Chiefs-and-England-wing-Jack-Nowell-twice-the-threat-after-surgery-restores-full-power-to-left-leg.html


"Nowell missed England’s tour to New Zealand as he underwent surgery to clear out a chronic knee condition which had bothered him since he was a teenager.

“I used to think it was growing pains,” said Nowell disarmingly.

It was not. The pain hampered him. Not that you would have noticed. But he returns a much more able athlete – heavier after putting on seven kilos to see him top the scales at 15¼ stone, and, crucially, he is free-moving.

“I basically had no proper muscle in my left leg, no real hamstring and did everything off my right leg,” Nowell revealed. “It’s not ideal for a wing to only be able to step off one side, is it? I just didn’t trust my left leg. Everything was on my right leg. If I had to come off my left, I’d just take the contact. So, now, pain-free it is so much better. I’ve only had two games since that 19-week lay-off but I notice it already. I can push off my left now, put all my body weight through it. It’s great.”


I acually think he'd be well suited to the 13 shirt, but that path for England is blocked by Manu (when fit) who's only a couple of years older than Jack.

As i said above and have said since the 6n...i wouldnt have a problem with Nowell on the wing at all. But i can see him at FB maybe next season...or part of this season for Exeter.

For a player of his height 15.25 st is a very powerful package, especially with his pace.

Question, if you only have a one leg with a full muscle set up, wouldn't you run in a long curve as in this case his right leg would be pushing further ahead than the left.

robshaw4england wrote:Both players stand at 5ft11 weighing around the 14 stone mark.

 We have a hooker around that stats line maybe a bit smaller height wise.

WELL-PAST-IT wrote:For a player of his height 15.25 st is a very powerful package, especially with his pace.

Question, if you only have a one leg with a full muscle set up, wouldn't you run in a long curve as in this case his right leg would be pushing further ahead than the left.

Hes alright as long as he plays on a sloped pitch

Personally I don't think Nowell is as talented as an all round player as JOC. JOC seems to have a better skill set. They'd probably be equal on the wing.

IronMike wrote:Personally I don't think Nowell is as talented as an all round player as JOC. JOC seems to have a better skill set. They'd probably be equal on the wing.

Yes. I think few players are as talented as JOC, but then you also need to fit the team and to the mental application aswell.

Cant fault Nowell on application though, and who knows if he is used right may go on to greater things than JOC

And therein lies the issue in relation to Lancaster...

Nowell is solid alround...power, increased pace, decent hands decent defence and i have no doubt will be consistant...as Baxter aludes to in his interview, saying Nowell consistantly breaks the line..makes the carries, gets through double tacklers...etc.

He's lancasters kind of player trustworthy to do his role to a high standard with no hiccups...whereas JOC can be seen as the wayward troubled magician.

LIW...indeed Nowell "could" go on to achieve more despite maybe not being quite as individually talented...

Biltong wrote:I haven't seen Nowell, so I can't comment on him. O'Connor is a selfish player, although talented he is not a great flyhalf at all, without a doubt in my mind he belongs in the back three, his individual skill is much more impressive than his ability to lead a backline.

True but his try vs. the Lions in the 2nd test I think was superb... I think there was probably 1-2 guys in the world who could have scored from there. O'Connor was one of them. Cooper wouldn't have had the strength... and in terms of guile I think he surpasses Beale.

he's not a 10... a 12 maybe.

Nowell looked good I thought in the six nations in terms of his rugby ability and not his silly hair.

He has decent pace and has a perfect build and shape for rugby and has a nice step and good hands. His decision making and composure was at times unpolished and he suffers from the same lack of creativity and ability to ad lib as all England backs. If he can break the mould there he could be something special. Time will tell.

GunsGerms wrote:Nowell looked good I thought in the six nations in terms of his rugby ability and not his silly hair.

He has decent pace and has a perfect build and shape for rugby and has a nice step and good hands. His decision making and composure was at times unpolished and he suffers from the same lack of creativity and ability to ad lib as all England backs. If he can break the mould there he could be something special. Time will tell.

Fan Guns??? Must have Irish parentage then surely

Yeah I think he is decent alright. Stood up to the task.

Its going to be interesting to see who starts.

I think Nowell could even start if he shows up well in training.
May is playing well for club though and as is the much talked about Rokoduguni.

But Yarde is not...though we know Lancs is a big fan.

11 Roko
14 Nowell
15 Brown

Would give you pace and power on both wings, Fb skills in Brown aswell as Nowell on the wing...again something Lancaster likes. Nowell and Roko give you defensive power on the wings...
i just think it looks the sort of set up lancaster would be happy with.

Nowell had a tendency to drop a few balls though... pressure, difficult passes, debut season perhaps?

Yarde mind.... the guy has serious serious pace. Heard he's not defensively brilliant but defence can be worked on... look at Habana, now one of the best in the business. But you can't train pace... either you have it or you don't.

Pace isnt the be all and end all. Bowe is a slug but one of the best wingers around. Also you can actually train pace. It is absolutely something you can improve.

fa0019 wrote:Nowell had a tendency to drop a few balls though... pressure, difficult passes, debut season perhaps?

Yarde mind.... the guy has serious serious pace. Heard he's not defensively brilliant but defence can be worked on... look at Habana, now one of the best in the business. But you can't train pace... either you have it or you don't.

There were a couple of howlers with Nowell but hopefully that was down to nerves and lack of experience. Other evidence (like taking out Picamoles on the rampage) suggests he has some real strengths.

Yarde looks/ed the real deal as an international winger, but player's form can go down as well as up. He has just moved clubs to Quins and they have had a tough start to the season. I would expect him to come good again but right now Roko is the guy with the best form.

GunsGerms wrote:Pace isnt the be all and end all. Bowe is a slug but one of the best wingers around. Also you can actually train pace. It is absolutely something you can improve.

You can, to an extent. But some guys just have huge natural advantages

lostinwales wrote:

fa0019 wrote:Nowell had a tendency to drop a few balls though... pressure, difficult passes, debut season perhaps?

Yarde mind.... the guy has serious serious pace. Heard he's not defensively brilliant but defence can be worked on... look at Habana, now one of the best in the business. But you can't train pace... either you have it or you don't.

There were a couple of howlers with Nowell but hopefully that was down to nerves and lack of experience. Other evidence (like taking out Picamoles on the rampage) suggests he has some real strengths.

Yarde looks/ed the real deal as an international winger, but player's form can go down as well as up. He has just moved clubs to Quins and they have had a tough start to the season. I would expect him to come good again but right now Roko is the guy with the best form.

Used to play with a guy who had awful hands. Truly awful.

He was super fast, had genuine competitive sprinter abilities but you could hardly trust him to catch every 1 in 2. He wasn't huge so I imagine he had smallish hands... it does make a difference.

lostinwales wrote:

GunsGerms wrote:Pace isnt the be all and end all. Bowe is a slug but one of the best wingers around. Also you can actually train pace. It is absolutely something you can improve.

You can, to an extent. But some guys just have huge natural advantages

Pace isn't at all I agree but once you've learnt to maximise it... it can't improve like for instance ball skills with age.

Some players. some wingers have average pace. Some have great 0-30, some long engines so can keep pace with line breaks.

However one on one.... i'd rather have a player who has it then doesn't in the backs.

Yarde too is perhaps the quickest player by the looks of it in NH rugby at least. At least acceleration wise.

Was talking to some chaps on an SA article on the merits of Engelbrecht or Serfontein at 13 for the RWC. Nearly all thought Engelbrecht was the best option. Why, Serfontein is a near perfect tackler, a great potential 12. But at 13 he is weak, he doesn't have the pace for the position.

Say he has a 95% tackle rate vs. Engelbrecht at 70%. Well his superior tackle rate is useless if he can't catch the man.... and given he was blasted by AAC 8+ years his senior I think its a genuine worry for SA. In that situation it was rather 0% vs. 70% in terms of tackling possibility. When you look at it like that you see how important pace is in the game.

fa0019 wrote:

lostinwales wrote:

GunsGerms wrote:Pace isnt the be all and end all. Bowe is a slug but one of the best wingers around. Also you can actually train pace. It is absolutely something you can improve.

You can, to an extent. But some guys just have huge natural advantages

Pace isn't at all I agree but once you've learnt to maximise it... it can't improve like for instance ball skills with age.

Some players. some wingers have average pace. Some have great 0-30, some long engines so can keep pace with line breaks.

However one on one.... i'd rather have a player who has it then doesn't in the backs.

Yarde too is perhaps the quickest player by the looks of it in NH rugby at least. At least acceleration wise.

Was talking to some chaps on an SA article on the merits of Engelbrecht or Serfontein at 13 for the RWC. Nearly all thought Engelbrecht was the best option. Why, Serfontein is a near perfect tackler, a great potential 12. But at 13 he is weak, he doesn't have the pace for the position.

Say he has a 95% tackle rate vs. Engelbrecht at 70%. Well his superior tackle rate is useless if he can't catch the man.... and given he was blasted by AAC 8+ years his senior I think its a genuine worry for SA. In that situation it was rather 0% vs. 70% in terms of tackling possibility. When you look at it like that you see how important pace is in the game.

I saw something saying that the guy with the quickest acceleration in the English team is Tuilagi. Its what helps to make him so explosive. He doesnt have the highest top speed but is not bad. Wade is another with great acceleration. Quickest in England always used to be Varndell, I just dont know if that is still the case but others with extreme pace are May and Sharples.

Is May faster than Yarde? Becuase he's crazily fast aswell...though they say Sharples is the quickest at Glos.

Jason Robinsons pace was the first 0-40. After that it looked like he was really struggling...but that was irrlevant...because the damage to the opposition was all done in the 0-40 metres.

Alternatively...Martin Offiah could sprint forever!!!

GeordieFalcon wrote:Is May faster than Yarde? Becuase he's crazily fast aswell...though they say Sharples is the quickest at Glos.

The only problem is that May has the worst schoolboy tendency of all.... running sideways.

It may cut at domestic rugby but good test defenders know how to cut down space and at the moment May does look a little poor for me.... reminds me of Varndell.

GeordieFalcon wrote:Jason Robinsons pace was the first 0-40. After that it looked like he was really struggling...but that was irrlevant...because the damage to the opposition was all done in the 0-40 metres.

Alternatively...Martin Offiah could sprint forever!!!

Remember in 2002 when he was beaten in a 70 metre sprinter by Elton Flatley!!! Elton Flatley of all people.

Offiah had a terrific engine didn't he. Would have been outstanding in pro rugby, a true great of the game.

Yes thats the thing Fa.
Robinson could be caught...be he was intelligent enough to use his skills...and if he was struggling he would ship the ball on. But that intial acceleration and sidestep / change of direction...wow it just broke defences....

Crazy to think he was in Whitley Bay when he was a 19yo or something...smoking and drinking like a bad un...glad he saw the light...

Do you remember Martin Offiahs try for Wigan in the final at Wembley...the full length of the pitch. Unbelievable.

GeordieFalcon wrote:Yes thats the thing Fa.
Robinson could be caught...be he was intelligent enough to use his skills...and if he was struggling he would ship the ball on. But that intial acceleration and sidestep / change of direction...wow it just broke defences....

Crazy to think he was in Whitley Bay when he was a 19yo or something...smoking and drinking like a bad un...glad he saw the light...

Do you remember Martin Offiahs try for Wigan in the final at Wembley...the full length of the pitch. Unbelievable.

Made Tait look like a right idiot if I recall!!!

It beggars belief that people thought Robinson wouldn't be able to cut it in union.

GeordieFalcon wrote:Is May faster than Yarde? Becuase he's crazily fast aswell...though they say Sharples is the quickest at Glos.

According to Ashton, Sharples is the fastest player he's played against. Not bad coming from Ashton who's pretty electric himself!

bluestonevedder wrote:

GeordieFalcon wrote:Is May faster than Yarde? Becuase he's crazily fast aswell...though they say Sharples is the quickest at Glos.

According to Ashton, Sharples is the fastest player he's played against. Not bad coming from Ashton who's pretty electric himself!

Caucau when he wasn't 20st. To be honest Caucau at 20st was still one of the best in the top14.

Habana, Howlett, Tony Underwood.

Lomu for all his size was the quickest in the AB squad in his youth. At 19st.

Shane Williams and Halfpenny were some of the quickest Welsh backs over the first 40m we've had in a long time.

A few seasons ago, Jamie Roberts was considered the fastest back in the squad according to the WRU, I seriously doubt that's still the case.

Might just be me, but I'd rather a slower player who is more explosive and has the ability to step over someone who can run a fast 100m in a straight line.

May was reported last year as being around 10.4 seconds for the 100m, that is county sprinter level and a good one at that. 10.1-10.2 is UK international level.

If Sharples is quicker he should be astonishing, why isn't he?

But it's not just about straight line speed, it's the ability to step, change direction etc. without losing momentum. That's where the smaller guys have the advantage, the shorter stride allows quicker change of footwork.

Might just be me, but I'd rather a slower player who is more explosive and has the ability to step over someone who can run a fast 100m in a straight line..

Iron Mike, I think you need both types in Rugby.

Wasps have a nice balance. A players like Varndell (who was criminally underused by England) can sprint the length of the pitch and is rediculously quick (or certainly was) and thats a serious weapon to have in your team. On the other side they have Wade, who is electric aswell but is the king in cramped spaces jinking and stepping.

Great balance.

I've always thought that Nowell was more like Halfpenny. Not very big, but hard to put down and both very solid players with decent steps that manage to get through small gaps. Good in defence and under the high ball, obviously Nowell isn't as good at kicking as HP but i think hes more of a running threat than him currently.

I'd go with Nowell/wade on one wing and Roko on the other. Gives a good balance as Geordie says, big strong fast roko on one wing and a small slippery guy on the other.

Nowell is pretty much the same size as Brown isn't he?

Both tough for their size and very evasive too