Racing 92 boss Stuart Lancaster believes Owen Farrell’s development over the past decade will be key to the Parisians’ success this season.
Lancaster, in his second season as manager of the racing team, has a new arsenal, led by England’s all-time leading scorer.
Appearing on the Rugby Paper podcast this week, the former England manager stressed that his former relationship with Farrell was vital ahead of any reconciliation at Racing.
Farrell’s growth
“I’ve reconnected with him, and I feel like we could have a really easy relationship,” he said on the podcast.
“Even in 2012 he brought that leadership element, his game knowledge was very well developed at that time and obviously his technique and mentality were incredibly strong.
“And now I have 12 years of experience with Saracens and internationally.”
Last season, Farrell announced that he was leaving English rugby club Saracens, where he had joined at the tender age of 14, to join the Parisians.
The 32-year-old has amassed 112 caps for England, won the Six Nations Cup three times, six Premierships and three Champions Cups in his illustrious career.
England’s loss, Racing’s gain
Lancaster has described the British press’s perception of the former England captain as ‘unsettling’ despite his immense success and said his presence will inevitably be missed.
“England will miss him,” Lancaster added.
“Owen, like Jonny Wilkinson, has had the opportunity to try something new in his career and challenge himself in a different way.
“From a racing perspective, we really needed someone to fill the quality void at flyhalf.”
With the cultural change, Lancaster stressed that Farrell will have to adapt to a more free-spirited style of play in France.
Leading the way in racing is scrum-half Nolan Le Garec, who will form an international half-back duo alongside Farrell.
He said: “I’m really looking forward to the relationship between Le Garrec and Farrell.
“Nolan is a little bit different to the traditional English scrum-half. He’s all about exploiting the space around the ruck.”
Halfback partnership
Le Garec recently missed Racing’s Top 14 opener after shoulder surgery, which saw them fall to a narrow 31-28 defeat by Castres, but Lancaster insist the 22-year-old is close to a return.
He continued: “It will be interesting to see how they work together.
“Just watching them together in training, you can see the synergy between them growing and Owen is really looking forward to it.
“From what I’ve seen, if both are prepared to share responsibility, it will work out well. But if it escalates into a power struggle, I’ll have to intervene!”
Racing, a club with such a rich history, will be hoping for better results than last year’s sixth-place finish and first-round play-off defeat to Bordeaux.
The ending was marred by controversy after owner Jackie Lorenzetti criticised star Springbok Siya Kolisi in the final game of the season, calling him a ‘transparent player’ and criticising his weight and form.
A new beginning
But Lancaster will be hoping the six-time French champions can make a fresh start with the addition of Farrell, Demba Bamba, Romain Taopifenua and former Sale key player Sam James.
James is another outstanding addition to Racing’s England squad and Lancaster could not believe their luck when the versatile outside back arrived.
He said: “He was really impressive. It’s really surprising that Sale let him go.
“No one in France knew him, but when I found out he was available, I thought I had to make a deal.
“Gael Fickou came up to me the other day and said he didn’t know how good a player he was.”
English combination
Lancaster said the 30-year-old’s playing style resembles that of Elliot Daley and Alex Good, two players Farrell enjoyed success with at Saracens, and the manager believes that will be a key element.
“Sam (James) was a great presence for Pharrell,” he said.
“He’s virtually perfect in training. His timing, his depth perception, his skill set and his ability to play inside centre, outside centre, at fullback.”
With a new partnership forming, Lancaster knows it could take time for this superstar squad to come together, but there is hope spreading across the club.
Check out the full episode of The Rugby Paper Podcast with Racing 92 Head Coach Stuart Lancaster here.
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