Billy Vunipola’s drive and determination have returned after the fall

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/feb/02/billy-vunipola-drive-determination-return

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When Billy Vunipola was dropped by England halfway through last November’s international series at Twickenham, his mother did not ease his pain with sympathetic words but reminded him of a passage in the bible about arrogance and humility. The Saracens’ No8, who made his debut as a 20-year old in the summer of 2013 and enjoyed a meteoric rise, was floored by a challenge far harder than any he had taken on a rugby field and quickly picked himself up.

Vunipola may be in contention for a starting place against Wales at the Millennium Stadium on Friday only because of the broken leg suffered by the forward who took over from him in November, Ben Morgan, but he showed against Munster in the Champions Cup last month that the drive and determination that were absent against New Zealand and South Africa two months before were back, supplemented by a new-found resolve.

When I was left out by England, I went away to work on a number of aspects,” said Vunipola, whose Wales opposite number is his cousin, Taulupe Faletau: the two did not confront each other at Twickenham last year because Vunipola was injured. “I had to stop a number of things getting to me.” Asked if he had consulted a sports psychologist, he replied: “The big thing for me is not that but God and I felt I had gone away from that. Manny Pacquiao went against his faith and stagnated.

“The biggest thing for me was getting ahead of myself and not being humble enough to know that, even though I had had a good match, I still needed to work on my game. I got used to performing at a standard that was good enough to play for England. I took advantage of that and felt I would always perform at that level when I took the pitch without working hard. I did not take the time to analyse other teams, thinking that my size alone would be enough. I did not appreciate what it meant to be with England until I was sent home. I used to moan but now I realise how fortunate I am.”

Vunipola found himself again by reading a passage in Matthew: “And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Arrogance has been replaced by humility. “My mother was a big help to me with her advice,” he said. “There are things you do not want to hear but have to. I listened to stuff that dented my ego, humbling myself to be lifted again. If I am told now that I have played well, I work harder again the following week and I am hugely excited by the opportunities I get now. There are a million players who would like to be in my position.”

With Morgan out for the season, Vunipola’s rival for the No8 jersey is Nick Easter, a player 14 years his senior. “Nick has a lot of experience and he has given me a few pointers,” said Vunipola, “lines I can take to get me to places quicker, when to give the ball and when not to, who to run at when running back and not being so honest all the time.

“I’m not saying he cheats but he is much cleverer than I am. He is really smart in the way he takes his opportunities. He has a very high skill level and he has given me a different perspective. A lot of what Harlequins do well is off the back of him making good yards: when he sees two props ahead of him, he does not run at them but in between them. I have always concentrated on the ball rather than looking up and seeing who I am running at. I asked him the other day how he was still a Test player at 36 and he replied: ‘Don’t overtrain.’

Vunipola’s ambition is not only to regain his starting place but stay on the field for 80 minutes: he has been substituted in each of his nine starts for England, averaging 56 minutes on the pitch. “If I want to be regarded as world-class or anywhere near that level I have to be able to play for the whole game,” he said. “Coming off after 60 minutes saying you have done your job is more for the props who are at the coal face and have a lot more strain put on their bodies. Going back to Wales completes the circle for me because I was brought up there. We have to match them and make things happen. They don’t like us: we don’t mind them but we want to beat them.”