Former England captain Owen Farrell has added to the hype around teenage sensation Noah Caluori, praising his confidence and physical prowess on show in an astonishing breakout season.
The 19-year-old scored five tries against Sale twice this season – on his first Prem start for Saracens in the fixture last October, and again this weekend as Saracens ran rampant in a 85-19 win, a record victory for the club in this division.
The winger’s exploits handed Mark McCall’s side a lifeline in their bid to reach the Prem play-offs and made his case for inclusion in the senior England squad this summer. McCall: “I think that’s one of the better wing performances in the Premiership that I have seen to be honest, for a long time, and I have seen a lot.
“We have had Ashy [Chris Ashton], Sean Maitland and David Strettle at the club, but I am not sure I have seen as much from one player in one game, albeit it was a game that blew out.”
Farrell has now added his name to the list of Caluori’s admirers, telling The Telegraph: “Everyone sees all the high-ball stuff and his finishing, but he has at times done an unbelievable job coming off his wing and taking some tough carries as well.
“The highlighted bits that everyone sees are not just the only thing that he does. He is big and strong as well, and he makes a difference all over the field.”
Caluori has 17 Prem tries this season from just six starts, and clearly outshone Tom Roebuck, England’s current right wing, in the latest victory over Sale.
His rise has been all the more remarkable given just three weeks prior, the teenager – an England under-20 international – was on loan at Ampthill in the Champ.
Farrell highlighted his confidence and willingness to improve as key attributes, adding: “He’s obviously special. When he speaks, he knows he wants to get better. He knows he has to, he knows he wants to learn more and he wants to do it as quickly as possible. But he’s great in terms of how much he backs himself at the same time, I would have never been like that when I was younger.”
Farrell also dismissed talk of his own possible return to the England set-up, saying: “I’ve not given it a lot of thought, and I don’t know if I need to do anything different other than what I am doing anyway, which is just trying to get on and be the best that I can be and the best help I can be around here.
“It [the World Cup] is a long way off at the minute. I know everybody wants to talk about it and rightly so, but I just want to crack on with what I am doing.”
