Why Christian Wade Shouldn't Waste His Time Playing Sevens

Christian Wade hit the headlines last weekend with a six-try performance against Worcester that rocketed the Wasps man to second in this season's leading try-scorer table in the Aviva Premiership.

The 24-year-old is enjoying life as part of a resurgent Wasps, who have reached the last four of Europe's premier club competition for the first time since 2007, and they are second in their domestic competition and on course for a play-off berth.

It usually follows that players in a successful side start to pique the interest of the national selectors, and Wasps have plenty of Englishmen Eddie Jones can call upon. Indeed, James Haskell, Joe Launchbury and Elliot Daly were all part of the Red Rose's Grand Slam squad.

But Wade was overlooked. The former RGS High Wycombe pupil has not had much luck when it comes to England honours.

He was due to play in the 2013 autumn internationals before a hamstring injury intervened, then he was ruled out for six months that December with a foot problem, per the Telegraph.

Other players took their chances in his absence, and in 2015 he was overlooked by Stuart Lancaster, not even making the original 50-man pre-World Cup party. Later that year, he was struck down with another foot injury that sidelined him for part of this season.

Now he is clearly fit and currently firing on all cylinders. But rather than take the chance to demand his form merits selection for England's tour of Australia, Wade has been talking up his prospects of heading to Rio to play in the Olympic Sevens tournament, per the Guardian:

"

An Olympic medal is one of the highest honours for anyone. You would be representing Great Britain and a medal would just be massive, something you can hold on to and be proud of. There will be millions of viewers watching ... it is probably the ultimate stage.

"

Except it's not, is it?

How many players have genuinely used Sevens as a springboard to success in the 15-man game? Sevens, with its own world series and increased sponsorship revenues and TV coverage, has been attracting players who specialise in the short form of the game.

But in the case of England, these are players without much chance of full 15-a-side recognition.

Ben Gollings, Chris Cracknell, Simon Amor—to name three—carved out excellent Sevens careers, but no one suggested their performances in that version of the game would somehow catapult them into the full England team.

And that's why Wade's reported attraction to this year's Olympic competition feels like a backward step, almost the easy route to international recognition—which it certainly is not when you consider how fit those players have to be—almost a signal of resignation that his 15s chances are too slim to pursue with any great vigour.

Surely a 24-year old in his sort of form should be using interviews like that to push claims for a place on the plane to Australia, where he can work each day under the eyes of Jones and his coaching staff to prove himself worthy of a shot.

Eddie Jones is clearly watching his men, but he will also be listening. Does Wade's soundbite paint him as a young man desperate to break into a winning England team?

Has Wade begun to believe the opinions formed about him in the media? Namely that, as an attacker, he is harder to handle than a live grenade, but his defending leaves room for improvement. He hinted at these weaknesses back in 2014 in the piece in the Mirror:

"

I can't just rely on scoring tries. Our main job as wingers is to finish off tries and also get over the gainline and that is something I've always done. But I also have to have the right defensive mindset: to be good at defending at the wide breakdowns, the high balls and the kick-chase. I have to keep working on my strengths as well as on my weaknesses.

"

What we should be hearing from him is that yes, he is small, and perhaps a big brute or two might batter him now and then, but there ain't no one who can run and dance and jink like he can. Not since Shane Williams hung up his boots. How many pundits picked on the Welshman for the odd defensive lapse?

Again in the Guardian, Rob Kitson, who would have no problem if Wade were to go to Rio, bemoans the culture of safety first that has perhaps played a part in the fact Wade has just the one full cap to his name:

"

Top-class rugby players also need to defend. But do people sit down, 25 years on, and marvel at the tackling of David Campese or Jonathan Davies? How come Nehe Milner-Scudder was among the stars of the last World Cup? As with Wade, the New Zealander is no giant but possesses the pace and ability to make defenders look silly in alternative ways.

"

There has so far been no call to Wade for the Olympic GB squad, but if there were one, he should turn it down. He has a Premiership title and European Cup to help his club side to win, and what he should be focused on is slaughtering defenders in front of him in those key games coming up to force Eddie Jones to pick him.

Running around in the Sevens arena will teach us nothing about Christian Wade, and it will teach him nothing about becoming a 15-a-side international wing.

A few weeks in Australia will do both.