During the time Stuart Lancaster spent contemplating who to pick as England's next captain, he received a letter. It was written by one of Chris Robshaw's old teachers at Millfield School in Somerset; the advice it contained was straightforward. If England wanted a leader with the necessary qualities of integrity, application and selflessness to guide the rugby team back on to the straight and narrow, Robshaw was their man. Lancaster, and the English rugby public, can only hope their new figurehead lives up to his billing.
Robshaw certainly fits the ideal age profile. Bill Beaumont was also handed the job at 25 and went on to be one of England's favourite captains. There are only two caveats, both of which will swiftly recede if England start well. The first is the obvious drawback: one cap against Argentina in Salta in 2009 is not a substantial body of Test experience. Second, and perhaps more significantly, Robshaw was not Lancaster's first choice. Tom Wood of Northampton had been earmarked for the job before suffering a toe injury. He would also have filled the No7 jersey Robshaw looks destined to wear. What happens when Wood is fit again remains uncertain.
As a consequence Robshaw's regime is for an initial period of two games, in Edinburgh and Rome. It is a pragmatic solution which offers some leeway all-round: two defeats and Lancaster can say he was always planning to rotate the armband; two wins and Robshaw will have garnered sufficient respect to carry him through to the end of the championship. At that point a permanent coach will be appointed and all bets will be off again.
Those who have worked closest with the flanker are suitably optimistic. Conor O'Shea, Harlequins' director of rugby, has been telling anyone who would listen for the last two years that England were missing a trick in not picking a player he believed could serve England with the same quiet excellence as Richard Hill. "Is he another Richard Hill? I believe he is," said O'Shea late last year. "Hill didn't get into the England team until he was almost 24. Chris is 25 but my feeling is that once he gets in, he will stay in for a long time. Only when you look closely at him do you properly appreciate his contribution. Then it's a case of 'Oh my God, I can't believe he's doing that amount of work.'"
O'Shea is also convinced Robshaw will fit the bill as captain, the latter having led Quins successfully for the past two years. "Provided he is given the right support, he will do well in what is an incredibly challenging role," said O'Shea. "I am sure he will do a great job." There is recognition in those words that Robshaw is inheriting the tiller of a stricken vessel and is heading for Scotland shorn of its more experienced crew members.
Robshaw, who has now made almost 150 first-team appearances for Quins, knows about adversity. His father Alan died of a heart attack at 40, when Chris was five. At school he suffered from dyslexia and had to redouble his efforts to keep up academically. In his early years as a professional he suffered a series of morale-sapping injuries, including a broken leg and a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament. For a player whose game was based around his fitness and work-rate it must have been an intensely difficult time.
All he could do was roll up his sleeves and give a career in rugby one more shot. The hard graft paid off when his fellow players voted him the Premiership's player of the year in 2008-09. He won his debut cap, captained England against the Australian Barbarians and the New Zealand Maori on tour in 2010 – then nothing. He was even omitted from the World Cup squad that travelled back to New Zealand last autumn, despite having impressed in the pre-tournament summer camp. It would have been easy to sulk, lose motivation and curse the unfairness of it all.
But the Redhill-born Robshaw is one of life's relentless triers. Out he went and helped steer his club to 14 successive wins in all competitions between September and December. It is possible the effort has taken its toll, as Quins have found the past month rather tougher. Whatever happens, Robshaw can be relied on to give his all. Whether that will be enough to transform England overnight is another matter.
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