James Haskell slams Stuart Lancaster treating England stars like school children
Rugby health and fitnessSaturday, 19 September 2020 at 22:28
Former England flanker James Haskell has told the real story behind England's 2015 World Cup exit in the latest extract from his explosive upcoming book, 'What A Flanker'.
Former England boss Stuart Lancaster had pointed blame at Chris Robshaw for spurning a kick for goal that might have earned the side a draw against Wales in 2015, but Haskell disagrees with this.
"I can say hand on heart it was not the captain Chris Robshaw’s fault in any way," wrote the 35-year-old..
"Perhaps when everyone has retired I will tell what really happened out on the pitch that day as I was in the team huddle," he added.
Of Robshaw, the 77 cap England back-rower added: "It shows the mark of the man that he has never come out and said what happened."
He went onto criticise Lancaster's coaching style.
"On the 2012 tour of South Africa, we were treated like kids," wrote Haskell.
"It may or may not have had something to do with the fact that Stuart was an ex-teacher... Being treated like kids on a school trip bred resentment."
You can read his full extract regarding to the 2015 Rugby World Cup disaster on The Telegraph's website.
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10 things you didn't know about James Haskell
1. Early life
Haskell was born in Windsor, Berkshire, and played for Maidenhead Rugby Club prior to joining (Wasps RFC), where he was part of the highly successful Colts set up.
2. Family
He is the son of Jonathan and Susie Haskell. James also has one sibling, a younger brother named Edward.
3. Trouble at school
In 2003, Haskell, then 18, filmed his friend Paul Doran-Jones, who was 17 at the time, having sex with his 17-year-old girlfriend by using a secret camera set up in a boys’ dormitory at Wellington College in Crowthorne. The boys then showed the video to their friends and were subsequently suspended from the Dukes Ride school.
4. Part-time gig
When he's not doing podcasts or training for MMA, he still loves to DJ.
5. Partner
James has been in a relationship with TV presenter Chloe Madeley since 2014. The couple married in 2018. Chloe is the daughter of TV legends Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan.
6. New sport
After retiring from rugby, Haskell signed to mixed martial arts promotion Bellator MMA as part of its Heavyweight division. In February 2020, it was announced that Haskell would make his professional mixed martial arts debut on 16 May 2020 at Wembley's SSE Arena. The event was ultimately postponed due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
7. Unwanted record
His five yellow cards for England is more than any other player in history.
8. Hidden talent
The flanker has a digger driving licence. He's been obsessed with JCBs since he was a young child.
9. Mini Hask on the horizon?
The pair don’t have any children yet, but Chloe has hinted that they’d both be ready to start a family. Speaking with Hello in early 2020, she said: ‘We’ve gone from one end of the spectrum, where we didn’t want children, to the other end where we thought, “yes, let’s try it”.’
10. Diet
A little over two years ago he revealed his diet saw him consume a whopping 3,750 calories a day.
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