Jonny May will run out first in the biggest match of his career this Saturday. The England wing will collect cap No 50, marking an incredible rise from 2013 rookie to one of the most lethal finishers in the international game. But it could all have been so different if he hadn’t decided against joining his teammates on a late-night drinking session.
The 29-year-old made his debut on the tour of Argentina six years ago, which began a long and fruitful journey that has brought him here: Japan, and the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.
When Owen Farrell holds back to let May run out alone inside the Oita Stadium, the Leicester wing will not be thinking about anything other than beating Australia, knowing that anything but will send England home and out of another World Cup prematurely.
He is, however, able to cast his mind back now and think about the moment where it all began – and how it very nearly didn’t happen had it not been for parents Peter and Hazel.
“My first cap I’ll always remember because it didn’t really go how I’d have thought,” said May. “It was Argentina 2013 and I can’t really remember the numbers but we picked 14 backs or something in the squad and I was looking around, it was Lions year and I thought ‘I’m probably going to get a game’. It was one of those tournaments where you were going to get a go and one player maybe won’t get a game.”
Sadly for May, it looked as though that player was him. Then-England coach Stuart Lancaster selected Christian Wade and David Strettle on the wing for the first Test with the Pumas, before selecting Wade and Marland Yarde for the second.
May added: “So my mum and dad came out, and I wasn’t picked for the first game. Then I wasn’t picked for the second game and I just felt... I didn’t feel ashamed but I didn’t feel great because my parents were out there and it looked like I wasn’t going to get a game.
“But then funnily enough Christian Wade got called up for the Lions on the morning of the game, and basically because my mum and dad were out I went out for dinner with them the night before and all the other non-23 players went out on the piss, so I got the ‘go on you can play’ pretty much!
“It’s funny how it works out and I ended up starting that game, and then what was probably quite a challenging couple of weeks finished on a real good note as my parents got to watch me play and I got my first cap. It all worked out in the end.”
May’s wait for his first international try is well documented, with his seven-game barren run snapped in eye-catching style with his memorable score against the All Blacks. Those early days saw inconsistent selection and a serious knee injury prevent any solid run in the England team, but under Eddie Jones he has become their most lethal weapon, leaving him sixth in the all-time scoring charts behind the illustrious names of Jason Robinson, Jeremy Guscott, Ben Cohen, Will Greenwood and leading try-scorer Rory Underwood.
“If you take a step back, you'd say it's an awesome achievement, something I'm very proud of and hopefully I've made my family proud,” May added.
“Every time I've played for England it's been an honour, to do it 50 times is a great achievement.
“But it's no time to take a step back at the moment, it's a huge team game at the weekend. It's about the team, so I'll just be focusing on I can contribute to that team performance as best I can and prepare and play no different to how I do every week.”
Jones is expected to name May in a team that could well be unchanged from the victory over Argentina last time out, with Billy Vunipola and Joe Marler both fit for selection, though Mako Vunipola is pushing to be restored to the starting XV and Jack Nowell looks certain to miss out completely.
