Jason Leonard: Firsts and Lasts
The England legend tells his story of just the two occasions he captained his country.
Jason Leonard is a rugby legend with 114 England caps awarded over 14 years, three British & Irish Lions tours, four Grand Slams and a Rugby World Cup victory among his many achievements.
His first cap came against Argentina in Buenos Aires in July 1990. He was 21 and it was a “real baptism of fire” because he was part of the first England team to play the Pumas on their home soil since the Falklands War. The crowd threw everything from oranges to a bath tap.
Then in 1992, with 10 caps to his name, Jason ruptured a disc in his neck which could have put paid to his rugby. Surgery, grafting a piece of his hip bone into his damaged neck, saw him make a full recovery to continue a glittering career.
He was affectionately known as the Fun Bus, a nickname attributed to a comment from Martin Bayfield. When Jason was injured and not expecting to tour to South Africa in 1994, he was nonetheless called up and Bayfield, seeing him in a very snug-fitting red shirt and a tad overweight, decided he resembled the proverbial London omnibus.
Fun has always been a major rugby value for the boy from Barking who started the game in the amateur days when he earned a living as a carpenter. Friendship is another given, with team mates spanning his lengthy international career still firm pals. And every time he pulled on an England shirt he felt blessed and grateful to everyone who helped him get to where all rugby fans would love to be.
He made no fewer than 290 appearances for Harlequins, served on both the Six Nations and Lions Boards and was an immensely popular RFU President in the 2015/16 season.
He has the distinction of captaining his country just twice, seven years apart, on the first occasion scoring his one and only international try and on the second securing an outstanding victory against Wales in the 2003 Rugby World Cup warm ups.
First 14 December 1996 at Twickenham (England 20 – 18 Argentina)
“There was a last minute injury to the new England captain, Phil de Glanville, and I was told you’re vice captain so now you’re captain! It was against Argentina, actually my first three England games had been against them, their forwards were very powerful.
“My mum and dad were there at Twickenham, they always religiously came to watch when I played there. All our parents were very matey, got together in the West Car Park and most had a better time than we had!
“We were a pretty new side with some old faces involved and we hadn’t really played together, whereas on that tour Argentina had hammered the four Divisional sides and the Combined Services, before being narrowly beaten by England A.
“I remember getting the captaincy, which was an honour, but it was a dull game, our backs had an absolute shocker. We just couldn’t get the ball out wide, we were dropping it, passing when we should have kicked and then kicking when we should have passed. In the end, I said to the forwards ‘OK, I’ve had enough of this, we’re not giving it to the backs, we are going to keep hold of the ball’ and we did for something like 15 or 20 minutes until Johno (Martin Johnson) won a lineout in their 22.
One and only
“Our driving maul led to my one and only international try. Mark Regan celebrated by picking the ball up after I grounded it and I remember saying let’s all get back and regroup as I didn’t want us to give any penalties away from the restart with it being such a close game.
“It was one of those games when you’re so much better than how you played but the one thing we did, which was important, was to bring some young players through, like Nick Beal who was on his debut. The Pumas ended with six penalties and Catty (Mike Catt) slotted five. It wasn’t a great performance but you have to take it on the chin. We’d lost the captain in the build-up, preparations had been hampered but we’d won, so it was a case of let’s move on.
“It was a time when we were moving between generations from Carling, Andrew and Rory Underwood and after that the newer guys went on to make a difference. There was a bit of huffing and puffing after the match because more was expected of us but you have to be mindful of inexperienced players so that they find their way into international rugby. Believe me no club match can replicate international games which are so much harder, faster and more powerful.
“I went to the post-match press conference and they asked me how I felt about Mark Regan’s try. I said: ‘Hey, he didn’t score that, that was my try and you’re trying to give it away!’ Frustratingly it was to remain my only international try.”
Last 23 August 2003 at Millennium Stadium (Wales 9-43 England)
“We were into the pre Rugby World Cup matches and I got the nod from Clive (Woodward) to lead what was a bit of an experimental side. We were in a good place, we’d had lots of wins and trained with a lot of players as a whole squad. We knew that selection for the World Cup depended on having a good game. The management were pretty clear about wanting to see people under pressure, pushing each other all the way to the 2003 tournament.
“The important thing was to put that to one side and play as a team, regardless of possible future selections. It was my job to get the best out of these young players, some of them knew they wouldn't be making the trip to Australia. I had to bring out the best in them, stop them being overawed by the task in hand.
“It was crucial to be open and honest, give positive and constructive criticism, also to say you’re here because you are good enough. I said if you play as well as you can you’ve done all you can do. Let’s train and play at 100% and give them a bloody headache regarding selection. I may be here with a hundred odd caps but I need to play well to get selected and to do that I need you to play well.
“And did they play well! There we were in a subdued Millennium Stadium and we were running them ragged. The ball was going through 20 or 30 pairs of hands and I can’t remember many games like it, they hardly got a sniff. We were on fire, we gave Clive and the coaches what they wanted, beat Wales in their own back yard by a fantastic margin.
In total control
“We were in total control, beat them 43-9 but it felt like it was even more. We literally ran them off their feet. I remember Dorian West coming off the bench. He was on the pitch for a minute, had the ball and I grabbed him by his shirt and chucked him towards the try line and he scored!
“A young Adam Jones came off the bench for Wales that day, he looked like a big shaggy bear, you walloped into him in the scrum and thought ‘he’s got a lot of weight and a hell of a lot of potential.’ Gethin Jenkins was also in the front row. The three of us had a beer after the game and I still keep in touch with them now.
“It was great to lead that team but in those days we always had more than one captain on the pitch. Johno always says that. He might say something to the players, or it could be Lol (Lawrence Dallaglio), Backy (Neil Back) or Will Greenwood. The big thing for me was playing for my country, wearing the shirt. People often ask which match was most special but they were all special for different reasons. I always felt I was representing everyone who’d ever wanted to play for England, who’d have given their right arm for it, and for all those who’d helped me get there, my family, school teachers, all my coaches, you are representing all of them.
“I miss it all the time. Maybe not the training, but the camaraderie, the fun, the environment. I was very lucky to play in a few England teams that morphed from the early 90s until 2003. There were always healthy rivalries in those teams but we were all mates, wanting to be together, socialising together. We were going out playing rugby with our friends, that was why you played the game."
