'To go from 12 months ago when they were playing in the championship to playing in the world championship, it was pretty wild, ' Theo Dan says: Photo: Getty Images/Dan Mullan
If you want evidence of the continued value of the Championship as a source of talent for English rugby — at a time when the very future of the league is being debated — then consider this case of Theo Dan.
< p>It's almost a year since Dan made the 120m walk through the picturesque Greensand Ridge forest from Ampthill's dressing room to the main pitch to face Ealing in the Championship. The Saracens hooker will line up for England on Saturday at the 50,000-capacity Stade Pierre-Mauroy in a Group D match against Chile.
And he's far from the only one to have made the same journey through the picturesque Bedfordshire countryside. Fullback Freddie Steward, scrum-half Alex Mitchell and flanker Ben Earl are also Ampthill graduates. The same can be said for Wales midfielder Sam Costelow. Of the 33 players in Steve Borthwick's England squad, 16 played in the Championship, while a further six players were on loan at clubs further down the pyramid.
In Dan's case, he makes it clear that his loan spell at Ampthill played an invaluable role in his World Cup qualification. “In total, I was there for almost a year and a half,” said 22-year-old Dan. “I learned a lot during this time in the Championship. The path from the locker rooms to the field lies through the forest. It was definitely an experience.
“I had a lot of memorable games. Whenever you play Jersey, you're up against the top team in the league, and I learned a lot of lessons there. Especially the first few players playing against them, scrimmage practice. You just have to take the medicine and learn from it. These lessons seemed like the end of the world at the time, but now they seem to have served me well.»
Path to the main field Ampthilla is not like most others. Photo: John Lawrence
The Championship's reward for developing such talent in recent years has been a funding cut from £600,000 to around £160,000, while clubs are currently unable to negotiate a new Professional Games Agreement , which directly affects their future.
From the moment Amptilla Director of Rugby Mark Lavery laid eyes on Dan, he was amazed by his raw ability. «I think he'll be gone in three years,» Lavery says. Ampthill didn't make Dan a star, but they certainly gave him the step up he needed to make it to this World Cup.
“The current administration doesn't quite understand the value these young people get from coming out of the premiership bubble where everyone is there for them,” Lavery said. “When they come to the Championships, they don’t have a bag of tackle in their hands all week. They are preparing for a good game against a host of former Premier League players and talented youngsters.
“The significance of having a win on the line is so important, unlike in the A League where they have to bring in loads of university students just to get enough players to complete the match. They play against competitive athletes who are always older and more experienced, and participation in such games does not half affect the speed of their development. » /> Dan receives the Man of the Match award
Ampthill provided not only a rugby education but also a life education, with Dan playing alongside teachers, builders and, in the case of Joe Bursis, a roofer. «A lot of them are teachers, some do manual labor, one of them does roofing during the day — it's the most strenuous mental work you can do in any weather — he plays flanker,» Dan said. “Sits in the sun eight to nine hours a day, then comes in the evening and takes a nap for maybe an hour, and then goes out onto the field. There are interesting people there.
“You developed close bonds with some of these boys. They were all in touch and wished me the best. Few of them will play full time and receive a full time salary. Most of them come from their day jobs.
Dan played for Ampthill until Christmas before returning to Saracens where he finished the season replacing Jamie George in the Premier League final against Sale Sharks. in just 11 minutes. It was the same combination that set up England's first two World Cup matches, and Dan owes George a debt of gratitude for acting as a mentor.
«Jamie was very, very good to me,» Dan said . “He took me under his wing this year, showed me the ropes, he was great, just gave me golden nuggets of advice. It's easy for people to be angry when they have competition, but he was just the opposite.
“Looking back, it's hard to put into words because the last 12 months have been a whirlwind. Once I actually got my chance at Sarris, everything happened pretty quickly. It was crazy to think about it. To go from 12 months ago when he was playing in the Championship to playing in the World Cup was pretty wild. Now is not the time to look back.»
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