2 weeks ago
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Autumn Nations Series: England v Australia
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Twickenham Date: Saturday, 9 November Kick-off: 15:10 GMT
Coverage: Listen to unrecorded commentary connected BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds, travel unrecorded substance commentary connected the BBC Sport website and app.
Exit, pursued by Asher.
Joe Marler's haka-baiting England departure was not abbreviated of drama. But the prop had agelong since slipped manager Steve Borthwick a signifier absorption to capable the vacancy helium near behind.
In December 2023, Marler was interviewed connected the touchlines of Harlequins' triumph against Sale.
"There is simply a young tight-head that has travel disconnected the seat for Sale," Marler told TNT Sport.
"And he's - mmm… [tasty]
"I person got a large happening astir young, up-and-coming front-rowers - [like] Fin Baxter for us. But this guy, fig 18, I similar the look of."
Asher Opoku-Fordjour, the fig 18 successful question, was a 19-year-old making lone his 2nd Premiership appearance. At 18st and 6ft 1in, helium is not large by modern proportions. The numbers unsocial did not request attention.
But Marler's hunch was connected the money. Opoku-Fordjour, present 20, was 1 to watch.
Less than a twelvemonth connected helium has replaced Marler successful England's elder squad and is the figurehead for a caller procreation of England front-rowers.
Like Marler, Andy Titterrell was instantly impressed by Opoku-Fordjour.
"In his archetypal oregon 2nd scrumming session, I can't retrieve who helium was scrumming against but helium gave him a fewer aerial miles successful a grooming session," erstwhile England and Lions hooker Titterrell tells BBC Sport of Opoku-Fordjour's accomplishment into the England Under-20s set-up.
Titterrell, who oversees forwards for the age-grade side, turned to manager Alan Dickens.
"I said 'we person to person this kid progressive astatine the weekend'."
Opoku-Fordjour's powerfulness shows up successful the wide, unfastened spaces, arsenic good arsenic astatine set-piece adjacent quarters.
He played his boyhood rugby arsenic a helping and inactive has a startling crook of pace. For some England Under-20s and Sale's elder side, his stampeding enactment breaks person go a acquainted sight.
Sale brag Alex Sanderson summed it up earlier this year.
"He's a tight-head prop with accelerated twitch. You conscionable don't get them," helium said, going connected to comparison their scarcity to "teddy bear", ahem, "manure".
"Ash has earthy athleticism, powerfulness and explosiveness," agrees Titterrell. "You person seen glimpses of that successful his ball-carrying quality - peculiarly against Ireland Under-20s successful the 2023 World Cup. He has that gait and power."
Titterrell is not the lone 2000s front-row look to beryllium shaping Opoku-Fordjour.
Dorian West, portion of the England 2003 Rugby World Cup squad that Titterrell missed retired on, is Sale's guardant coach.
"You deliberation of tight-head props done the years, you deliberation of Julian White, Darren Garforth and Phil Vickery, those benignant of lads," helium tells BBC Sport. "They are large men - they were massive.
"Asher is not rather the aforesaid arsenic them astatine the minute. He is much of a toned athlete, but immensely beardown and powerful.
"It is looking truly bully for him with the signifier and size helium is now. He is simply a bully nonrecreational and if helium carries connected processing and increasing successful the close mode implicit the adjacent fewer years, helium is going to beryllium immoderate athlete.
"He is obscurity adjacent finished."
Maybe due to the fact that Opoku-Fordjour does not acceptable the aged tight-head mould, helium has besides appeared connected the other broadside of the scrum.
While helium plays tight-head for Sale, helium switched to loose-head for England Under-20s, wherever Gloucester's Afolabi Fasogbon and Bath's Vilikesa Sela springiness England mammoth extent astatine three.
The trio were hugely awesome successful the team's age-grade World Cup triumph successful the summer, with set-piece dominance splintering France successful the final.
They are not the lone reasons to beryllium cheerful.
Harlequins' 22-year-old Baxter made his Test debut successful the summer. Team-mate Nathan Jibulu, 21, is poised to unit cardinal contract-holder Theo Dan, 23, astatine hooker.
Northampton's Tarek Haffar and Emmanuel Iyogun, some 23, are 2 much promising prop prospects.
In all, England anticipation they person a aureate procreation lined up down Marler and Dan Cole, who are nearing the extremity of their careers, and Ellis Genge and Will Stuart, 29 and 28 respectively.
West believes that, erstwhile the modulation is finished, Opoku-Fordjour would similar to extremity up backmost astatine tight-head.
But successful modern Test rugby, versatility tin beryllium the cardinal that unlocks the adjacent level and a spot successful a squad.
West and Titterrell's time was different. Replacements were rarer. Specialists stayed put. And the set-piece was much chaotic.
Footage from their playing days provides amusement, alternatively than education, to their young charges.
"The lads laughter present erstwhile they spot the footage of the games we played in," says West.
"Back past the referee did not person overmuch engagement successful the engagement astatine scrums - you got unneurotic and got connected with it.
"There was much impact, a batch much scrums ending up connected the level and determination was a definite magnitude of brutality progressive successful that.
"Even so, the players present are truthful overmuch bigger and astir apt stronger than we were successful the past. It is wholly antithetic things they bash nowadays."
Differing styles, but identical destinations. Opoku-Fordjour and the remainder are arriving accelerated connected the planetary country and, arsenic successful the scrum, volition instrumentality immoderate shifting erstwhile they are successful place.
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