By his own admission, Zach Mercer is “the last one hanging on”. It is less of a case of the next cab off the rank, more of the last, but one of Eddie Jones’s apprentices looks likely to finally win his first England cap this autumn. Amid England’s back‑row crisis through injury and suspension, opportunity knocks for Mercer.
In truth, he is not doing himself justice and Todd Blackadder, not one prone to hyperbole, describes the 21-year-old No 8 as Bath’s form player of the season so far and as having “the best feet in the game at the moment”. But perhaps therein lies the problem for a player previously perceived as flashy in attack but suspect in defence.
Written by Gerard Meagher
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/oct/17/zach-mercer-bigger-stronger-england-eddie-jones under the title “Beefed-up Zach Mercer out to show England he is more than fast feet”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
