England’s MANU mountain

Manu Tuilagi’s physicality will be one of England’s strengths in the World Cup.

SPEND any time around rugby players and you get used to the fact that they are enormous. Generally, they view the process of cramming their frames into a seat as an obstacle course, seemingly intent on confirming their reputation as ‘gym monkeys’.

But just occasionally, there is a specimen who breaks the mould, who stuns the world with their physicality and what they are capable of, and chooses the World Cup in which to do so. The last player to achieve that feat was Jonah Lomu, in 1995. Over the next six weeks in New Zealand, Manu Tuilagi could do the same.