‘Special’ Pollock predicted try-scoring Test debut

Tommy Freeman, a team-mate, claims England debutant Henry Pollock, had predicted that he would score his first Test try on the wing and that he had even practiced his celebration the night before.

England’s 68-14 Six Nations victory in Cardiff was glossed over by Pollock, 20, who came off the bench to score two late tries against Wales on Saturday.

Henry Arundell’s previous record for the Northampton Saints’ back row was broken by George Ford’s pass to open his account wide, making the Northampton Saints’ back row the youngest try-scorer in England men.

Freeman and Pollock’s meteoric rise, from winning the Under-20 World Cup with England last summer to breaking through at Northampton and making his Test debut, is not surprising to Saints team-mates.

Freeman, who became the first England player to score a try in each of their six nations games, called him “unbelievable.”

He brings a 20-year-old’s energy like you have never seen before, despite my best efforts not to overdo it.

“I can’t recall my first game when I was nervous and shaking in the corner. Nothing about this guy, though, fazes him.

“I can recall]Friday night as well. He told me he would get his first try on the wing, and he did, and he did.

He showed me what he was going to do while he was also having his try celebrations in the room.

“But fair play to him, that’s the kind of guy he is, and he backs it up, and he has a long career ahead of him.”

With a second try, which also came from a Ford assist, Pollock added another score to his impressive Test credentials just twelve minutes after his first try.

After allowing the ball to go, BBC commentator Andrew Cotter declared, “He will be here for a long time to come.”

Matt Dawson, a former England scrum-half, claims Pollock “over-delivered” on the hype surrounding his game.

He scored two tries on his debut, which is awesome, but Dawson said it was far beyond what I had anticipated when he made his Cardiff debut.

I took a chance on playing him, but it totally worked out and he delivered on time.