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Maro Itoje says it felt “very weird” watching England play from afar this summer but he believes more top players should consider taking a break to prolong their careers. The British & Irish Lions captain was rested for his country’s three Nations Championship games in July and is now feeling the benefits of “taking a breath” after an intense year on and off the field.
In addition to the burden of leadership for club and country, Itoje also lost his mother last year and, with the 2027 World Cup looming, the national coach, Steve Borthwick, offered his captain the chance of a mini-sabbatical. He has emerged fit, healthy and mentally rested for the season ahead having enjoyed his first full club pre-season at Saracens since 2014.
“I don’t regret it at all,” Itoje said at the Prem media launch at Twickenham. “In some respects it was a little bit weird being away from the team, especially whilst games were going on. But at the same time I felt like it was the right thing to do. Mentally it was a busy year, both personally and professionally, so it was nice to have a bit of time to take a breath.”
Coincidentally, Itoje bumped into the England squad at Heathrow airport on the day they were returning from the South African leg of their tour but otherwise he did his best to keep his distance, even choosing not to watch the games live to avoid getting too emotionally involved. “When you watch a game live, you’re in every nook and cranny, every tackle. But that also probably has a hidden emotional kind of weight. I felt it would have defeated the purpose of what I was trying to achieve.”
Itoje, who turns 32 next month, would certainly recommend a break to other leading players as and when the chance arises, with South Africa and New Zealand having long since pursued a policy of allowing their top stars to sign contracts in Japan. “It is very much case by case but I think that, for players who have the blessing to be at the top of the game for a period of time, a proactive approach like this one works.
“I was taken aback initially because it just never entered my mind. It was never something that I thought was an option … I kind of had it in my mind that ‘this is the way the cookie crumbles’ and you just have to power through. [But] the more I thought about it, the more I kind of agreed with it. If I was not going to do it then I’m not sure when the next window would have been.”
The next challenge is to hit the ground running when the Prem season kicks off this month before a busy November. England are scheduled to play four Tests on successive weekends, starting with a game against Australia on 8 November, and a refreshed Itoje will be keen to make an immediate impact.
“I hope the break is giving me what’s necessary for me to come back better. Since I’ve been involved with England, I’ve pretty much been involved in every campaign. Saracens for a large period of that time were the top team in Europe, so we’re going deep into Europe and deep in the Premiership. And that has also helped with Lions tours and selections.
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“I’ve been very fortunate to have had what I’ve had but the cost of that, I guess, is that you don’t tend to have a break. Apart from missing training today, I’ve had a full pre-season [with Saracens] to work on myself and my body and be around the team, and I think that’s been a good thing.”
Itoje will soon have added responsibilities on his plate with his wife, Mimi, who is pregnant with the couple’s first child – but on the England front he says he was encouraged by what he saw towards the end of England’s summer Tests under the leadership of his Saracens teammate Jamie George. “I was delighted with the last two results,” he said.
“Obviously the Fiji game was a big win and in the Argentina game they showed a lot of character away from home. The challenge and opportunity for us now is to build on that to go forward.”
