Hassell-Collins playing his way into England contention

London Irish winger Ollie Hassell-Collins insists he remains committed to the Exiles, despite speculation linking him with a move to defending Premiership champions Leicester Tigers and talk surrounding a potential England debut.

Hassell-Collins, who first played rugby at Newbury RFC, is the Premiership’s second top scorer with eight tries and has impressed in the Exiles’ European Rugby Champions Cup campaign – it’s no wonder he’s the talk of the town.

The 23-year-old was in South Africa this month alongside fellow Berkshire lad Will Joseph as the Exiles suffered a 34-14 Champions Cup defeat against Cape Town’s Stormers.

And the duo will both be hoping to take their game overseas again in 2023, with the Six Nations beginning in February and the World Cup set to take place in France in September.

For now at least the exciting Hassell-Collins is focused on helping third-bottom Irish propel themselves up the table and believes a top-eight finish is still well within the Exiles’ reach.

“We’re obviously disappointed to have lost in South Africa but, like a lot of this season, there were positives in the performance,” Hassell-Collins said.

“It was exciting for us as a young team to test ourselves against a different outfit, with their different style and approach to the game.

“We even had time to explore Cape Town, it was nice to have a bit of a restart before heading back and focusing on the Premiership again.”

Hassell-Collins was one of the standout performers as Irish beat Newcastle Falcons 39-17 on December 3 before scoring as the Exiles became the first side all season to beat league leaders Saracens on Boxing Day.

The winger and his teammates are now set for an important conclusion to the festive period as Irish look to kick-start their season, beginning with a trip to Gloucester on Saturday.

He said: “Newcastle was massive for us in terms of restoring some confidence, especially when we knew we had a three-week break coming up – no one wants to end on a loss.

“We’ve been there or thereabouts all season, but maybe haven’t quite put an 80-minute performance together as often as we’d like to.

“We were pretty close at Newcastle and Saracens so hopefully we can build on that.”

The clash saw Hassell-Collins line up against Falcons’ winger Adam Radwan, who has two England caps to his name, while the Exiles’ Ben Loader was part of an England squad that took on the Barbarians in 2019.

Those are just three of the names in contention for a place on England’s wings, alongside the more established faces of Exeter Chiefs’ Jack Nowell, Gloucester’s Jonny May and Bath’s Joe Cokanasiga.

Hassell-Collins admitted the competition for international places and domestic plaudits helps spur him on to improve.

He even suggested organising a foot race to see who was the quickest over 100m.

“It’s definitely a good thing, it’s almost like a wingers’ union if you can call it that – we’re all encouraging each other to get better,” he said.

“It’s good for the game and the quality of the league to have a lot of exciting players.

“Yes, I challenged some of them to a foot race. There are some really fast lads but I’d back myself – you’ve got to haven’t you.”

Hassell-Collins featured in two of Eddie Jones’ England squads without making it onto the pitch and is now being tipped for a recall following the Australian’s dismissal and replacement with Leicester head coach Steve Borthwick.

While there’s nothing concrete to connect the two men, the rumour mill suggests England’s new head coach was instrumental in trying to lure Hassell-Collins to Leicester for next season.

The one definite is that Hassell-Collins remains committed to London Irish for now, having recently surpassed the 200-point mark for the club he’s been at since 2018.

He said: “I’ve got to play well for Irish to even be considered, so that’s all I’m focusing on at the moment but if an England call-up happens, it’ll be amazing.”