Love rugby: Top bosses urge England to limit players’ workload

England’s top stars are playing too much rugby, but the onus should not fall solely on clubs to rest players, according to Love’s head coach.

Although a top England player can be in action for 11 months of the year, contracts between clubs and the Rugby Football Union have mandatory playing limits and rest periods.

But club bosses believe there needs to be a balance in when a player is dropped and say the prospect of England captain Maro Itoje being rested this summer is a “step forward”.

“Clubs can’t always carry the load,” Northampton director of rugby Phil Dawson said.

“Sometimes the international team also has to say (a player) doesn’t need to play in this game or that game.”

Itoje, who could miss this summer’s Test matches against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina, had a physically and mentally draining 12 months when he led the British and Irish Lions in Australia last summer.

Dr. spoke in a special episode Rugby Union Weekly Podcast, Dawson, who coaches one of England’s best young players, said club and country needed to take a long-term view of player workloads.

“I think (resting Itoje) would show really clever man-management in terms of someone who has played a lot of minutes,” Dawson added.

“We want (our players) to be playing for the Saints in four years. We don’t want to run Tommy Freeman on the field. There has to be a discussion and a relationship and a balance about how many minutes they play and how many games they play.

“If Henry Pollock goes past his 30-game mark, is it entirely up to me to rest him? To talk around, really, what’s best for Henry?

“We have to be aware of the fact that we are looking at eight years, not eight months.”