Tommy Freeman is known for being multi-talented, so it is fitting that he arrives brandishing a golf club. Thankfully none of the ensuing questions provoke its use in a non-sporting capacity. The Northampton back’s handicap will have to wait, because after a trip to Sale on Saturday he will dive into England’s Six Nations camp, surfacing in mid-March after the concluding fixture in Paris.
Les Bleus are the tournament favourites but if Steve Borthwick’s team stay on an upward curve – they have won 11 straight Tests – there is a decent chance that encounter at Stade de France in seven weeks’ time will decide the title. An expansive Saints side also top the Prem before round 10, and the ever-improving Freeman personifies the prevailing effervescence of club and country.
By his own admission he was not quite ready for international rugby when first called on by Eddie Jones in 2022 but now Freeman’s blend of skills – prodigious strength, pace, ball-handling, work-rate, adaptability and game intelligence – make him a true Test-match animal.
Andy Farrell clearly thinks so: Freeman started all three British & Irish Lions Tests in Australia last summer. At only 24 he now talks of the “young boys” such as Edoardo Todaro emerging in the buoyant Saints squad. If a callow Freeman was not primed for Test rugby four years ago, you wonder what he has gleaned about performing at the highest level since.
“It’s to do with thinking a lot less,” he says. “You can go in and want to try to impress the coaches, to get your hands on the ball. When you’ve got that mentality sometimes you get a bit lost because you’re chasing the ball everywhere.
“Now I know the ball’s going to come and I just play rugby. You need to relax and do what you do at your club. Yes it’s big pressure, yes it’s 80,000 people watching, but at the end of the day it’s just rugby. The sooner you pick that up the better it is for you.”
Northampton secured a home Champions Cup knockout tie against Castres by defeating Scarlets last Sunday and were made to work hard, with Freeman having a relatively quiet day at outside-centre. He was obliged to stay patient and disciplined against dangerous opponents, which is bound to apply even more during the Six Nations.
“At 13 sometimes you don’t get as many opportunities,” says Freeman, who can also cover full-back, but has played most of his senior rugby on the wing. “When they come you’ve got to make the most of them. There’s some cues I’ve picked up – foot speed, control – that you’ve got to look out for. It’s not just as easy as running off shoulders.”
England soon fly to Girona for warm-weather training before installing themselves at Pennyhill Park for the tournament. Given the recent run of victories under Borthwick the camp is clearly buzzing, and for Freeman continuity of selection is a significant bonus.
“It’s a great squad,” he says. “The same faces, which is always good. You’re around similar people, playing what you’re used to, and really getting to know the connections with those players.
“It’s an awesome place to go with the facilities and everything: it’s the top of the top and you’re with the best players in the country. Something England have improved massively from when I first went in is the ability to switch off: things are going on, darts and bits and pieces. I can’t wait.”
England have played some attractive rugby of late although they place considerably more emphasis on tactical kicking than Northampton. Is it fair to suggest that, while Saints run the ball from anywhere, Borthwick’s side aim to play in the opposition’s half?
“I wouldn’t say that,” Freeman says. “You’ve got to think risk-reward. We want to play heads-up rugby with England – we want to move the ball and play at our edge if we need to. We want the quickest and best way to get out of our half to put pressure on.
“If that’s through a competitive kick in the air, if that’s going long and getting a good chase, or playing out the back and kicking from an edge, it’s whatever suits best.”
After Northampton’s evening kick-off at Sale the Prem goes into hibernation until late March. While Phil Dowson’s side intend to stay top, seventh-placed Sale are desperate to give themselves a chance of the playoffs.
“They’re a physical bunch and we haven’t won there for a while so we’ve got a big challenge ahead,” Freeman says. “In terms of the way they’re going in the Prem, I think this game’s pretty big for them.”
A Freeman-inspired Northampton may resume the domestic season top of the pile in two months but the Six Nations – a key staging post before next year’s Rugby World Cup – will soon be his sole focus.
