Henry Arundell may only be 20 years old, but England’s new rugby star is already receiving international acclaim after scoring 5 tries for England on Saturday’s match against Chile in the Rugby World Cup.
England romped to a mammoth 71-0 victory over Chile in the Rugby World Cup pool game with winger Arundell grabbing a record-breaking five tries on his debut appearance.
The dynamic 20-year-old winger, who used to ply his trade as a full-back, has a sprinter’s speed and squats more than any other England back.
England now top Pool D on 14 points after three victories and have taken a decisive stride towards the quarter-finals.
England head coach Steve Borthwick said of Arundell’s star performance:
“I think he played really well. He took those opportunities and is a fantastic finisher. The message to him was to bring his point of difference onto the pitch, and he did that.”
Of his own performance, Arundell said:
“It’s great scoring five tries; but in the grand scheme of things we haven’t won the World Cup yet. We still need to win the group. It’s fun having individual stuff, but the main priority is winning the tournament.”
Who is Henry Arundell?
Arundell attended Harrow School and was a part of the famous London Irish Academy since he was 14 years old, whilst also playing his club rugby for Bradford-on-Avon RFC.
Whilst at school, Arundell was also selected as part of the England under-18 squad.
However, 2021/22 was the season Arundell was introduced to the world with his “wondrous running and near-unbelievable scores.”
Making his Premiership Rugby Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup debuts for London Irish against Saracens, the lattermost of which he scored, Arundell quickly started picking up rugby news headlines.
Despite London Irish falling just short away to Toulon in the Challenge Cup, Henry Arundell scored what some called the try of the century as he showed incredible pace to take the ball from one end of the pitch to the other.
Arundell was the joint top scorer in the 2022 Under 20 Six Nations with four tries in three appearances, going viral with runaway tries whilst adorning the Rose.
After making his Gallagher Premiership debut away to Bristol Bears, he continued his try-scoring form with four more tries in three appearances against Leicester Tigers, which included a brace in the Premiership Rugby Cup semi-final.
Arundell inspired a comeback draw over Wasps with a try and assist in a 20-minute cameo that proved vital in the Club’s first Heineken Champions Cup qualification in a decade, too capturing the imaginations of the wider rugby world with a 93-metre try against RC Toulonnais in the EPCR Challenge Cup.
Accolades naturally followed for Arundell, foremostly being named the Land Rover Discovery of the Season at the 2022 Premiership Rugby Awards, which had previously been awarded to Maro Itoje of Saracens and Exeter Chiefs’ Henry Slade.
Arundell, joined the England touring squad for the July 2022 tour of Australia and was named on the bench for the first test in Perth.
2023 already sees Arundell become one of only four Englishmen to score five tries in a single international match.
A star is born.
Photo credit: England Rugby 2023 Copyright. Press Pic – News Licence.
