England
England can match All Blacks with summer season, says Haskell
ESPN Staff
November 6, 2015

James Haskell believes English rugby should be played in the summer rather than winter in order to help close the gap to Rugby World Cup champions New Zealand.

Hosts England crashed out at the pool stages of their own World Cup as the All Blacks made history by becoming the first nation to successfully retain the Webb Ellis trophy.

Wasps co-captain Haskell spent a season playing for the New Zealand-based Highlanders in 2012 and believes a switch to warm-weather rugby would be a benefit.

"Culturally, in New Zealand they live and breathe rugby," Haskell told the Daily Mail. "First and foremost everyone wants to be a rugby player, no one wants to be in The Only Way Is Essex or a footballer.

"It helps when the whole nation is geared towards one thing. They play touch as soon as they can walk, in good weather. If they don't make their Super 15 team, they play club rugby. The surfaces are better and I didn't have one wet weather game.

"The only change I can suggest if you want us to compete is to make rugby over here a summer sport. Then we can play in dry weather and play a style of rugby we want to play. There's no point wanting to be like New Zealand because we're not them.

"There isn't a miracle answer, but if we encouraged more people to play touch, focus on the skills and play in the summer, things would change."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

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