by Danny Wilson’s tone was telling. With a shrug and a half-grin, the Harlequins head coach clearly knew he was making a big statement; even after a tight win over Glasgow Warriors in which Will Evans was outstanding.
“We had some big players in the back row who are not available and that is the Scotland international [we were playing against],” Wilson said. “And I thought Will Evans was the best, in terms of what he did at the breakdown. In that battlefield, I thought he was excellent.”
A fiercely contested contest was finally decided through two periods of sin bin contrast. Harlequins scored two tries with Sione Tuipulotu serving his 10 minutes just before half-time. Later, although Joe Marler was absent after a high tackle, the hosts kept Glasgow scoreless thanks to some narrow defending.
The duel between the two open sides, Evans and Rory Darge, was very strong; more so because the breakdown was chaotic. Darge, Scotland’s co-captain for the Six Nations, is a fantastic player. You always have to watch a game twice to understand his impact around the tackle. The 24-year-old was a menace against England at Murrayfield in February, relentlessly wrestling and turning white shirts over the ball.
It was a huge compliment to Wilson which would suggest that Evans eclipsed Darge on Friday evening. Then again, Evans has some pedigree. Back in 2016, aged 19, Eddie Jones was included in England’s training squad, and has established himself as an elite poacher over the intervening years. Since the start of the 2019-20 Premiership season, Evans has averaged 1.65 turnovers per 80 minutes of league action. Only Jack Willis (2.1) is more prolific. Tom Curry is third with 1.33.
Evans remains unbounded. At 27 years old, that may remain the case. But he seems at ease with it all. In a candid interview with RugbyPass last year, Evans admitted he was tormented by a sense of “underachievement”. Now, he indicated, the desire to participate in the Test has been “put to bed”. Wilson might advise him to keep the faith.
“I would love to see him get a chance with England because he has been excellent this year,” added Wilson. “He punches way above his weight. I think he’s picking up his breakdowns better – he’s probably gone after too many before – and hopefully he’ll get a chance.”
More details from Stats Perform back up this hunch. Evans conceded a penalty every 80 minutes in the Premier League last season. That figure is currently lower at 0.59. As Wilson pointed out, Evans is maturing into a thoughtful, shrewd operator.
There seems to be a decent queue ahead of him as far as the England picture goes, even if Ben Earl is still seen as a No 8. Without Jack Willis or Lewis Ludlam, you have holder Sam Underhill as well as Tom. and Ben Curry, Tom Pearson and maybe even Guy Pepper, who was called up by Steve Borthwick for the final week of the Six Nations.
Having said that, the Champions Cup matches – especially in the winning stages – were considered the next step down from the Test level. They are shop windows that must also provide a satisfying personal challenge. Against Darge, who will certainly be close to the British and Irish Lions squad next summer, Evans was very influential. Stats Perform counted 23 tackles, the first of which hit Tuipulotu in midfield. Watch how Alex Dombrandt is able to bounce and almost earn the turnover:
Evans’ attacking skills are perhaps underrated and he turned the Warriors around with a smart chip later in the first quarter:
Here, in the 15th minute, Evans and Darge start facing each other in Glasgow:
George Horne flicks a pass towards the byline and what follows is spectacular. As Stafford McDowall collects the loose ball, see where Evans and Darge are:
McDowall avoids Marcus Smith and André Esterhuizen but Evans screeches him to the floor and punches in, seemingly beating Tuipulotu to the ball. Darge steps in to clear Evans, and is clearly frustrated that the referee, Tual Trainini, has not rewarded him:
On the following stage, Horne snipes close to the wreck. Smith cuts down on the Warriors investigator and Evans is chasing again. Darge has to flip it from the breakdown:
One aspect of Evans’ game is that he rarely stays in touch for long. Here, he is back on his feet and interacting with Trainini as the next phase begins. From his gestures, Evans seems to be making the point that he took the ball out of McDowall’s grasp. Trainini responds, arguing that Evans did not drop the carrier between tackling and jackalling:
This slow motion replay shows how the referees have to monitor. Evans looks to lift the ball from McDowall with his left hand. However, he doesn’t fire McDowall with his right. Trainini has a point, it seems:
Shortly thereafter, however, Evans is rewarded. The sequence begins with him dumping his own tackle on Jack Dempsey; a great example of a defender punching above the weight given by Dempsey, who is huge against England in the Six Nations, is listed at 111kg and Evans at 99kg. Dombrandt helps here, but Evans is strong in contact. Again, he stays on his feet and goes into the break just to patiently interrupt:
On the next step, Horne sees space around the rim. Will Collier quickly fills that and drives his man backwards. Evans on site. He tracks the tackle, drops below Matt Fagerson, another Scotland regular, and pounces. It is doubtful whether he comes before the formation of the wreck but luck favors the bold – as often happens at the breakdown – and Trainini rewards him this time with a penalty:
Choco turnovers regularly shape matches. From this, Harlequins kicked to the corner and scored their first try. However, the margin for error is small. Champions can sometimes kill the opposition by tackling the ball before another defender has cleared the tackle. Darge did this in the first half on Friday, ironically after tackling Evans.
We take the next sequence as Horne feeds Dempsey. Note Evans’ position:
In this case, after André Esterhuizen and Oscar Beard together to fall Dempsey, there is a chance to jackal. Evans stands. He is able to compete, but moves away from the break to fill the defensive line:
One step later, Danny Care speeds up to meet Tom Jordan. Arguing near the ball again, Evans goes in. Darge has to turn a goal around the back foot, with Horne and Max Williamson also going into the backstop. Evans still pilfers possession. Here, however, Trainini chastises Care, feeling that the cleaners have been hampered by his failure to roll out quickly enough:
It’s tough on Evans, who remains on the floor in pain. Jackalling requires serious courage:
Glasgow scored twice in quick succession from here, and took the lead when Evans was caught in a ruck to concede a penalty. Then came Marler’s sin bin, and a period of determined defense from Harlequins. With seconds left on the yellow card, as Warriors push inside the opposition 22, Tuipulotu:
Watch Marcus Smith call Evans around a wreck. Evans, quick across the ground and adept at clearing himself from breakdowns, was constantly darting into this position, helping Harlequins maintain width in their defensive line:
Now trace the open side. He stops Horne’s dart, drops the carrier and then faces the ball again. He doesn’t get the turnover, but the ruck lasts four or five seconds; just enough time for a 14-man defense to set itself up:
Esterhuizen is penalized a few steps later and Marler returns to bring Harlequins back to full.
Evans was also instrumental in the mock effort his team put through. As Sam Riley throws Dombrandt, who is elevated by Marler and Dillon Lewis, Evans steps in to secure the ball:
The arrangement is tight, with Evans right in the middle:
And, as the drive moves out of the lift pod, leaving Lewis, Dombrandt and Marler, you can see Evans at the start of the melee that tears over the try-line:
As Harlequins took the ensuing restart, they had to fend off one last attack. This is Evans’ 23rd final tackle of the game. He goes low on Lucio Sordoni and fights to move away from the ball to avoid a penalty. He is exhausted, but still clear minded:
Steve Borthwick appreciates talented, tough, intelligent players and Evans is one of those. The England head coach will also know that Evans, along with Jack Willis at Toulouse, is the best jackaller available to him.
Sam Underhill has been close to his best at times during these Six Nations, but Borthwick will always be looking for ways to improve for England ahead of the 2027 World Cup. A breakdown threat like Evans could add to Felix Jones’ attacking defensive system and give a greater chance of attack in the transition period. Watch Kwagga Smith’s impact on the World Cup final from the bench.
Either way, Borthwick will be watching Harlequins in their quarter-final this weekend. A trip to Stade Chaban-Delmas to take on Bordeaux-Bègles is a great task that will require a special performance, especially in defence. As things stand, Harlequins are 15 point underdogs. You get the feeling that Evans is the kind of character who will really enjoy those choices.
