Pearson grabs chance to show his potential

IN terms of an on-field audition, Northampton’s Tom Pearson could not have done much more to impress watching England head coach, Steve Borthwick. 

- MARK STEVENS

Afforded the perfect stage on which to deliver a stellar performance, the Saints star did not disappoint, producing a man-ofthe-match display as England A trounced Portugal 91-5 last Sunday at Leicester’s Welford Road.

The 24-year-old forward was seemingly everywhere, taking his impressive club form onto the international scene. He scored one of 15 tries on the day, but it was his allround game which would have been duly noted by Borthwick and his fellow coaches.

Given licence to play, Pearson and his teammates clearly revelled against the Portuguese. “I loved it,” he said. “It was good to play with loads of players who haven’t met before, let along played with each other before. The coaches gave us a lot of freedom in the week to do our own thing, play off each other, and build up those connections and combinations.”