Rugby World Cup 2015 will come “far too soon” for rugby league convert Sam Burgess, according to former English flanker Lewis Moody.
World Cup-winner Moody, a 71-Test veteran, believes the South Sydney NRL firebrand could struggle to master union’s complexities and break into Stuart Lancaster’s England squad in time for next year’s global tournament.
Burgess will swap Sydney for the south west next month, arriving at the Recreation Ground on October 15 to play for Bath.
The Premiership league rugby club will pitch Burgess into action in the centres, with head coach Mike Ford still confident the 25-year-old will flourish in the back-row in time.
Former Leicester and Bath flanker Moody, part of England’s triumphant 2003 squad, believes next year’s World Cup may be just out of reach for Burgess.
“There’s a lot of interest and excitement around Sam’s arrival, on how he’ll fit into the Bath squad and what will happen with England,” Moody said.
“Will they put him straight into the squad? With the way Stuart’s been I find it hard to imagine that they would include him straight away.
“Going back to 2003 Josh Lewsey hadn’t played many games for England going into the Six Nations.
“So there’s always a chance for him, but I think the World Cup will be far too soon.
“But that won’t be down to coaches or other players, it will be down to Sam and how quickly he fits into the game.
“I’m sure he’ll have been doing his homework on rucking and mauling, offside lines and dark arts, because it’s a very different game.”
Burgess has been a sensation in four years at Souths, but will have just nine months to handle his code switch in time to make England’s World Cup squad.
England launch their World Cup bid on home soil on September 18 next year, but head coach Lancaster will have his extended training squad in place by July.
Moody expects Burgess to thrive in union in the long-term, but believes his line-breaking talents will be best employed from the centres, not the back-row.
“Back-row is such a technical position and there’s such a lot to learn, it’s not just broken-field play, you’ve got the breakdown, scrum and line-out,” he said.
“I think back-row might be slightly too complicated, and will take some time to learn.
“The technical side of the game is tough, but I’d imagine they’ll keep it pretty simple for Sam at Bath straight away.”
carnivean
Roar Rookie
You seem to think I'm arguing that he can't make the transition. I'm not. Saying that they don't need to learn anything to make that transition, as swamprat did, is just plain wrong.
Loosey
Guest
20-25 minute? I reckon with good coaching he'll be an 80 minute weapon and might break a sweat, you have to remember Brad Thorn went and played for the best, hardest working team in rugby union and was considered a workhorse all after he was considered too slow to play for the Broncos.
Loosey
Guest
It's an old argument mate, the old league to union thing has been done many times now.
Loosey
Guest
People need to remember Sam Burgess is the best rugby league forward in the world. I don't know if he'll make the word cup, but if Brad Thorn is anything to judge by, Burgess will be a sensation.
Loosey
Guest
Fun days you have mate
Rob G
Guest
selected to play on the bench, how many minutes did he play in the world cup knockout stages, 20 all up???
carnivean
Roar Rookie
Holding down in the tackle is illegal in Union, and he'll have to adapt to that in short order, or get a red card in his first game for repeated offenses.
Kuruki
Roar Guru
This guy is incredible. his numbers this season blow SBW out of the water. Sam is the best forward in League and if given good coaching could well become a 20-25 minute weapon off the bench which is well worth the effort.
Ra
Guest
Yeah holding a guy up using upper body strength adapted from wrestling and taking a guy to the ground in a front on smash is meat n drink to slamming Sam, so whats your point?
expatmatt
Guest
they might even give the darkness a scare -lol. Seriously I know he is a freak athlete but he ain't going to pick up the nuances of the game in the time he has available - maybe a crash and bash up the middle centre but the defensive angles and lines are completely different to league - took SBW a while to get his head around that aspect of the game and when he made a mess of it he was shown up badly Tragedy for the game when teams or managers think they cam just parachute a player/client from one code into another - didn't work so well for Benji and others so Burgess has bitten of a good size challenge fro hisself - good luck to him
swifty
Guest
Thorn came from a rugby family and knew as much about the game as most rugby fans and players. He certainly had a head start compared to Burgess or Farrell.
carnivean
Roar Rookie
Yeah, because Sam has spent the last 4 years cleaning players out of rucks, jumping and lifting in lineouts, pushing in scrums and chasing kicks from behind the kicker. Nothing at all to learn. More importantly all of those years he's spent learning to wrestle players and hold them down will come in really handy, as union refs are all for players lying all over the tackled player for 2-3 seconds while the defensive line forms.
swamprat
Roar Pro
Rugby followers sometimes believe a very good league player needs to be educated about how to play rugby. They don't.
Uncle Eric
Guest
Not another 'X factor', maybe the WBs could offload Kurtley? Does he have any pommy blood in him?
Magic Sponge
Guest
He will be walk it in. Do you realise how good this player is. All the roarers apart from D Lord and myself said that Folau was no chance and he walked in his first year.
hoqni
Guest
Hey, they want a team to beat the Wallabies, first of all. Who has won RWC in England?
nerval
Guest
atlas, what I'm "on about" is that SBW - yes, we all know he's an Aucklander! - was selected to play for the All Blacks as soon as he started playing rugby union in NZ - NZRU policy being to not consider anybody for the All Blacks while plying their trade overseas. Didn't you know that?
atlas
Guest
What are you on about? there was no question of SBW being eligible. He was born in Auckland, NZ. His first rugby game back in NZ was for his club, Belfast (Christchurch) then he played the 2010 season of ITM Cup rugby for Canterbury before being selected for the All Blacks end of year tour in 2010, making his debut 6 November 2010 v England
Glenn Innes
Guest
I know directly he is signed by Bath (I think it was Bath) but England have signed him as a gamble for 2015 not 2019..that is five years away he may well be washed up as a player by then even England are not silly enough to sign a player for an event there is a realistic probability he will not be around to compete in. They know their current squad is not good enough to beat New Zealand and they are taking a punt Burgess might just be the x factor.Worse case scenario he can't cut it (unlikely) best case scenario the gamble pays off, most likely result he can hold his own in test Rugby without being an instant superstar, but make no mistake he is there for 2015 not 2019
Glenn Innes
Guest
Remember he is not trying to make the All Blacks, he will waltz into the English team... and improve them.