Every dog has it's day : The Ballard of Chris Robshaw

Every dog has it's day.

Everybody from the north to the south pole loves the tale of the underdog and how against all that stood in its way it overcame it's nemasis. Whether it was the tales of the R.A.F against the might of the Luftwaffe , Exeter City drawing 0-0 in the theater of dreams against the Manchester United juggernaught. In rugby there was the magic of Masi and the boot of Bergamasco which left a mark on French rugby it will be eager to cover up.

Amongst the party atmosphere of the rugby world cup last year there was one man who playing with 6 , 7, and 8 on his back was making a mark on English rugby. Fueled by disapointment Chris Robshaw's rise from 0 minutes in the world cup warm ups to leading England out at Murreyfield on Saturday is nothing short of a fairytale in rugby terms. In a world where everything seems to be based on 35 metre back hand passes , who can run a 100 metres in 0.2 seconds with only one leg Robshaw has paved the way for the work horse to return to international rugby. With an engine fit for a steam train delivering a cure for English rugby Robshaw has set the tone for what Stuart Lancaster wants in his England team.

At one point there seemed to be a endless list of players in front of Chris Robshaw consisting of just about every back row from Alnwick to Auckland. Robshaw offers something which is rare amongst most back rows in the sense that he is in the same mould as South African back row machine. In the RFU reports about the world cup he was described as the fittest player by a country mile and showed a real desire to be there.

Hats off to Mr.Robshaw for taking the collar of English rugby by the neck and showing why he wants to play for England.

So in short a lot of hard work and passion can see any dog have it's day.

The RFU fitness report used the term "a country mile"? That's shockingly unprofessional. Surely there's a unit of fitness. Like the North. So Robshaw was 45mNorth fitter than everyone else.