On 7 April 2024, in entrance of a frothing Franklin’s Gardens, George Hendy’s life modified without end. He’d solely been on the pitch a matter of seconds as a substitute for Burger Odendaal when, on the hour mark and with their Champions Cup knock-out tie towards Munster locked at 14-14, Northampton had the feed to a line-out inside their very own 22.
Few membership sides wherever on the earth have matched the efficiency of the Saints’ backline this season, however even by their requirements this was blockbuster. Fast ball off the highest had 22-year-old Fin Smith transferring from the entrance foot. Fraser Dingwall – a comparative veteran at 25 – straightened and drew a deal with. Ollie Sleightholme, 24, provided help and burst by means of a niche earlier than linking with 23-year-old Tommy Freeman. By the point the ball made its solution to 21-year-old Hendy, Munster’s gamers had been greedy at shadows because the flaming-haired teenager slid over within the nook, sticking his tongue out as he did so.
“It was unimaginable,” Hendy tells RugbyPass as his workforce gears up for a Premiership remaining showdown with Tub at Twickenham. “To attain with my first contact, and to spherical off such a superb workforce attempt, that was actually a second I’ll always remember. That was one thing we practiced week in and week out so to have the ability to execute that in a sport was actually particular. However the second was perhaps even higher.”
Now with their noses in entrance and with eight minutes left on the clock, Northampton sought a killer blow. Round Munster’s 22, the boys in inexperienced, black and gold flung passes down the aisle with a bouncing ball reaching Hendy on his heels and round 30 metres away from the attempt line. He gathered on the half-volley, pinned his ears again, brushed previous Jack Crowley, shrugged off Simon Zebo and dotted down a match-clinching stunner.
“It’s been a whirlwind since then,” he explains. “In case you had mentioned that this could have been the place I’d be in, then I’d have bitten your hand off. That sport was virtually like, blink and also you’ll miss it. It was exhausting to take all of it in. I used to be truly in a little bit of shock after the sport to be trustworthy.”
English followers aren’t the one rugby supporters who veer into hyperbole at any time when a younger winger bursts on the scene. However the checklist of prospects able to breaking try-scoring data for the Pink Rose is lengthy and rising longer.
The newest hotshot is Exeter’s Immanuel Feyi-Waboso who has already left a mark on the Take a look at enviornment. Earlier than him it was Leicester’s Ollie Hassell-Collins. Earlier than him was Henry Arundell, who’s lightning in a bottle expertise now looks like a distant storm following his transfer to France.
I attempt to not evaluate myself to different wingers. It’s a slippery slope. You can begin making an attempt to be one thing that you simply’re not. I’m doing my finest to regulate what I can management and that’s actually simply my very own sport.
“I attempt to not evaluate myself to different wingers,” Hendy says. “It’s a slippery slope. You can begin making an attempt to be one thing that you simply’re not. I’m doing my finest to regulate what I can management and that’s actually simply my very own sport. I’m doing my finest to regulate my feelings on the pitch as a lot as attainable. I’m conscious that followers and perhaps some journalists prefer to make comparisons. I get it, it’s good for the story. However I’m simply being me. I do know that if I carry out at my finest I can do some harm.”
Earlier than the ultimate towards Tub, Hendy had performed 20 senior matches for Northampton: 15 Premiership video games and 5 Champions Cup ties. Curiously he’s not the top-ranked participant throughout any key metric and all the time has a competitor above him.
🗣️ “Northampton have a couple of foot within the quarter-final.”
🌟 Some particular person magic from George Hendy to increase Northampton’s lead!#InvestecChampionsCup | #NORvMUN pic.twitter.com/ogs1HUUlsO
— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) April 7, 2024
When every participant’s first 20 video games alone, Feyi-Waboso has a better proportion of dominant carries (67%) to Hendy’s (50%). Freeman, in his first 20 matches for Saints, averaged extra line-breaks per sport (1.34) and made extra carries (9.64) than Hendy (0.99 and seven.74). Utilizing this time frame, Max Malins made extra break assists and had higher deal with success than Hendy, Jack Rowell had extra attempt involvements per sport than Hendy, Sleightholme scored extra tries per sport than Hendy and Hassel-Collins made extra tackles per sport than Hendy.
What the numbers don’t reveal is what he seems like with a ball in his hand at full gallop. His wild hair, his rangy limbs, his wiggling hips; it’s an unorthodox type that’s proving a nightmare for even seasoned defenders. Not lengthy after his double strike towards Munster, just a few commentators and pundits started noticing similarities between Hendy and France’s attempt machine, Damian Penaud.
George is a very skilful man and may flip his hand to numerous sports activities. He’s such an excellent athlete. And he’s robust. Put that in entrance of individuals and he comes out the opposite facet much more typically than he will get stopped.
Sam Vesty
“Another person has mentioned that,” Sam Vesty, Northampton’s head coach, acknowledged. “Why not? He’s George Hendy-esque, although. He’s a very skilful man and may flip his hand to numerous sports activities. He’s such an excellent athlete. And he’s robust. Put that in entrance of individuals and he comes out the opposite facet much more typically than he will get stopped. He beats that first man so typically.”
The Ginger-Penaud or ‘Flexible Hendy’ as his Saints teammates name him, is a late bloomer within the sport. “Till a 12 months or two in the past my favorite sport was truly cricket,” he reveals. “I nonetheless play typically for my village workforce. I represented just a few district sides in Warwickshire after I was youthful. I’m a ‘keeper-batsman. A really tall ‘keeper however my lengthy arms assist.
“My dad is definitely a eager cricketer and all the time inspired me to tackle the game. However sadly I used to be by no means nearly as good at cricket as I used to be at rugby.”
Not that his expertise was all the time obvious. Three years in the past – across the time he began considering a profession in rugby – he was reduce from Northampton’s academy as just a few of his teammates round him had been provided skilled offers. “I used to be initially instructed I wasn’t going to get a contract,” Hendy says. “I used to be simply planning to go to school then and was fairly dissatisfied. However I had just a few academy league video games left to play and simply thought, ‘you’ve obtained nothing to lose’. So I went on the market and performed with this freedom. I didn’t overthink, I simply let my physique act. And it was a number of the finest rugby I’d ever performed. After these video games they provided me a contract and I used to be in. However I didn’t count on to be the place I’m now.”
Although he does his finest to not heed the comparisons with Penaud – regardless of his mum sharing by way of WhatsApp each article that mentions her son – he recognises that such discuss can solely be a optimistic. “Look, it’s good to be spoken about in the identical sentence as a man like that,” he concedes. “It should imply I’m doing one thing proper. I’ve all the time been a reasonably elusive runner and I’ve now obtained a bit extra power and dimension, so I’m capable of bust by means of tackles. I’m additionally considering extra as I run, in search of a defender’s mushy shoulder, looking for mismatches, that form of factor. However, as we’ve mentioned already, the hype round younger gamers can get out of hand. I simply need to preserve doing what I’m doing.
“Enjoying for Saints is finally the most effective factor for me. We’re enjoying a number of the most attacking rugby i’ve ever seen, not to mention been part of. Each coaching session is contemporary and attacking and thrilling. Each participant trusts the man subsequent to him and we’re loving it. We’re all mates and all of us have the identical mindset which is to take pleasure in what we’re doing. Rugby is meant to be enjoyable. I hope it’s clear that we’re loving the type of rugby that the coaches have us enjoying. Hopefully that may convey us some silverware.”
