England players were involved in a scene ‘like something from Star Wars ’ as part of their preparations for Saturday’s Six Nations showdown with Ireland.
Eddie Jones ’ men take on Ireland needing a win to stay in contention for this year’s championship and members of the squad took time out from a hectic training schedule in Bristol to deliver a virtual session to pupils at the nearby Summerhill Academy.
England go into the game in third place in the Six Nations table, one point behind Ireland and four behind unbeaten France.
“I’m really looking forward to it, of course I’m looking forward to it,” Leicester ’s Ellis Genge told the Mirror. “I’m very excited, it’s a massive game, if we lose we can’t win the Six Nations so it’s as clear cut as that.
“I’m excited to be back at Twickenham for a second time for a sellout crowd against Ireland and the biggest game of the tournament so far.”
Players including Genge, Henry Slade and Jack Nowell were displayed on a hologram system provided by O2’s 5G network and were able to coach the children through various drills as well as a Q&A session.
Slade has started all three of England’s matches so far in the Six Nations and was on hand to give his insights to some of the kids.
He said: “It was a really good experience, it was quite cool to be there but not ‘be there’- being on a hologram is the sort of stuff you see in Star Wars so it was a bit different.
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“It was cool to be able to give a bit of coaching to some young guys and girls coming up who hopefully want to play rugby and it was a bit of fun.”
England will be hopeful of a positive result on Saturday ahead of a final day trip to Paris which could decide the Championship - but the session provided some light relief from the pressures of elite sport.
Slade’s Exeter teammate Nowell has worked his way back into the England setup following two years away and has started the last two games, wins over Italy and Wales.
The winger has missed the interaction at community events, saying: “Obviously we’ve been locked away for a year or so now and it’s always a big part of what we do and it’s our chance to give back a little bit as well.
“Some of us were lucky enough to experience things like this when we were younger but a lot of us didn’t. With COVID, stuff is very limited and people aren’t too sure what they can and can’t do, so for us, obviously we’re being safe and this is the next best thing.
“We were pretty shocked by the quality of it and how good the picture was of us - it was awesome and something we were very happy to be able to do.”
Summerhill Academy headteacher Chris Barratt added: “We have a big push at the moment on what we call a healthy bodies, healthy minds approach in school with lots of active learning.
“We’re introducing a new active uniform for the next academic year and we push healthy foods as well as healthy living. We know that it’s good for children’s future in itself but it also helps children to engage with our curriculum better.
“Children that are healthy have got more energy, they manage their concentration levels better and they can engage with the learning more successfully.”
O2’s 5G mobile network is available in over 300 towns and cities in the UK, with the ambition to reach 50% of the UK’s population with its 5G coverage in 2023.
To find out more about O2’s 5G network and their work with the RFU, follow @O2 or @O2Sports on Twitter.
