Vickery wants ‘angry’ England

LONDON – Phil Vickery, England’s new captain, wants the world champions to become an “angry” side as they look to put their miserable run of recent form behind them in next month’s Six Nations opener against Scotland at Twickenham.

Wasps prop Vickery was appointed as skipper in succession to Martin Corry when new England coach Brian Ashton named his first squad since succeeding former coach Andy Robinson. England will return to Twickenham 10 weeks after they were booed off the field by a normally loyal home crowd following a 25-14 loss to South Africa – their eighth defeat in their last nine Tests.World Cup winning forward Vickery, whose career was in doubt as recently as last year after a third operation on his neck and back, said it was vital the current side showed plenty of passion in the run-up to the defence of their title in France starting in September.”I want the England team to get angry, to show it means everything to them,” he told the latest edition of Rugby World magazine.Vickery, 30, whose career as a top-class player spans both the amateur and professional eras, suggested that his younger team-mates may have had too sheltered a life.”Sometimes I think the new generation of rugby players haven’t had it tough enough,” said the farmer’s son from Cornwall, south-west England.”I used to milk 100 cows six days a week and then go to a place like Newbridge in Wales on a wet Wednesday night and have my head kicked in.Although he has handed the captaincy to the 49-times capped Vickery and recalled World Cup-winner Jason Robinson to his squad 15 months after the former skipper announced his international retirement, as well as bringing back playmaker Mike Catt, Ashton has also included four uncapped players in his 33-man squad.Saracens centre Andy Farrell, the former Great Britain rugby league captain, Bristol No 8 Dan Ward-Smith, Wasps flanker Tom Rees and London Irish flyhalf Shane Geraghty have all been given a chance to prove their worth.”I am not bleating about the fans.They have been magnificent in the past, and we let them down.But we have Scotland in the Calcutta Cup in the first game of the Six Nations at Twickenham, and we are going to need the atmosphere to be really buzzing.”Nampa-AFPEngland will return to Twickenham 10 weeks after they were booed off the field by a normally loyal home crowd following a 25-14 loss to South Africa – their eighth defeat in their last nine Tests.World Cup winning forward Vickery, whose career was in doubt as recently as last year after a third operation on his neck and back, said it was vital the current side showed plenty of passion in the run-up to the defence of their title in France starting in September.”I want the England team to get angry, to show it means everything to them,” he told the latest edition of Rugby World magazine.Vickery, 30, whose career as a top-class player spans both the amateur and professional eras, suggested that his younger team-mates may have had too sheltered a life.”Sometimes I think the new generation of rugby players haven’t had it tough enough,” said the farmer’s son from Cornwall, south-west England.”I used to milk 100 cows six days a week and then go to a place like Newbridge in Wales on a wet Wednesday night and have my head kicked in.Although he has handed the captaincy to the 49-times capped Vickery and recalled World Cup-winner Jason Robinson to his squad 15 months after the former skipper announced his international retirement, as well as bringing back playmaker Mike Catt, Ashton has also included four uncapped players in his 33-man squad.Saracens centre Andy Farrell, the former Great Britain rugby league captain, Bristol No 8 Dan Ward-Smith, Wasps flanker Tom Rees and London Irish flyhalf Shane Geraghty have all been given a chance to prove their worth.”I am not bleating about the fans.They have been magnificent in the past, and we let them down.But we have Scotland in the Calcutta Cup in the first game of the Six Nations at Twickenham, and we are going to need the atmosphere to be really buzzing.”Nampa-AFP