Anthony Allen aims to avoid becoming England's forgotten man by making himself the centre of attention in the season's climax.
Allen’s debut three years ago is the stuff nightmares are made of: one intercept and one missed tackle equalled two New Zealand tries and a record 40-21 defeat.
Things did not get much better one week later as England suffered a first defeat to Argentina on home soil. Like so much English talent, Allen was sent back to his club and written off as a defensive lightweight.
That tag still grates the 23-year-old despite his move to the Tigers where he maintains he has been transformed into a player ready to take his place at the front of the queue for England’s No.12 shirt.
He said: “When I played for England three years ago it (defence) was an area of weakness because I was young.
“I have developed a lot since then both physically and mentally and have essentially turned into a man. It does take time to do that.
“I have started to take on more defensive responsibility and at Leicester it is drummed into you, you have to make that tackle.
“I am not the finished article. It has been a tough season in some ways, starting at a new club and settling in. But that has helped me as a player – it has forced me out of my comfort zone.
“I have had to learn to be more confident; running around the park dishing out the commands. “That means having the confidence to call in players and to take risks without being afraid of things going wrong.
“People say my kicking game is limited but I have stepped up several times this season.
“I am really confident with that part of my game but it is about choosing when to use it. I am not used as Leicester’s main kicking threat but that is not to say I can’t do it.
“Getting my first cap for England was a massive day and it highlighted everything I needed to work on to be at that level.
“I want to get people talking about me again. Lots of other people are being talked up as 12s for England and I want to be part of that group.”
Ironically one of his tormentors in chief on his English debut – Aaron Mauger – was his partner in the Tigers midfield this season before injury unfortunately brought the All Black’s career to an end.
Mauger will be a big loss for the Tigers next season not just as a player but for his role as vice-captain.
But after turning in arguably the performance of his career against rivals Bath last week, Allen says he is ready to fill his boyhood hero’s boots.
He added: “Aaron Mauger was the captain within the backline so players look up to him.
“There’s no question we will miss him but it will also give me the chance to be more of a leader in the team.
“He has been a massive help to me since I moved here. He has so much experience and has played much more at first receiver so he is able to pass on lots of technical points which have been really useful.
“The Bath game was definitely one of the best games I have played since moving to Leicester – but there’s more to come from me.
“Everyone before was talking about Bath and how confident they were going into the game. We were aware they were on a good streak but we wanted to prove that it is never easy to come to Welford Road.
“Cockers (Richard Cockerill) was really pleased with us afterwards and said we did well. Words of praise are pretty rare from him but there were plenty of things he still wants us to improve.
“The main thing is having a home semi-final for the play-offs.
“There were a lot of good times at Gloucester but the final step was always just missing. I have been to finals and have that experience of those sorts of games but now I want to go that extra step.”
Allen’s debut three years ago is the stuff nightmares are made of: one intercept and one missed tackle equalled two New Zealand tries and a record 40-21 defeat.
Things did not get much better one week later as England suffered a first defeat to Argentina on home soil. Like so much English talent, Allen was sent back to his club and written off as a defensive lightweight.
That tag still grates the 23-year-old despite his move to the Tigers where he maintains he has been transformed into a player ready to take his place at the front of the queue for England’s No.12 shirt.
He said: “When I played for England three years ago it (defence) was an area of weakness because I was young.
“I have developed a lot since then both physically and mentally and have essentially turned into a man. It does take time to do that.
“I have started to take on more defensive responsibility and at Leicester it is drummed into you, you have to make that tackle.
“I am not the finished article. It has been a tough season in some ways, starting at a new club and settling in. But that has helped me as a player – it has forced me out of my comfort zone.
“I have had to learn to be more confident; running around the park dishing out the commands. “That means having the confidence to call in players and to take risks without being afraid of things going wrong.
“People say my kicking game is limited but I have stepped up several times this season.
“I am really confident with that part of my game but it is about choosing when to use it. I am not used as Leicester’s main kicking threat but that is not to say I can’t do it.
“Getting my first cap for England was a massive day and it highlighted everything I needed to work on to be at that level.
“I want to get people talking about me again. Lots of other people are being talked up as 12s for England and I want to be part of that group.”
Ironically one of his tormentors in chief on his English debut – Aaron Mauger – was his partner in the Tigers midfield this season before injury unfortunately brought the All Black’s career to an end.
Mauger will be a big loss for the Tigers next season not just as a player but for his role as vice-captain.
But after turning in arguably the performance of his career against rivals Bath last week, Allen says he is ready to fill his boyhood hero’s boots.
He added: “Aaron Mauger was the captain within the backline so players look up to him.
“There’s no question we will miss him but it will also give me the chance to be more of a leader in the team.
“He has been a massive help to me since I moved here. He has so much experience and has played much more at first receiver so he is able to pass on lots of technical points which have been really useful.
“The Bath game was definitely one of the best games I have played since moving to Leicester – but there’s more to come from me.
“Everyone before was talking about Bath and how confident they were going into the game. We were aware they were on a good streak but we wanted to prove that it is never easy to come to Welford Road.
“Cockers (Richard Cockerill) was really pleased with us afterwards and said we did well. Words of praise are pretty rare from him but there were plenty of things he still wants us to improve.
“The main thing is having a home semi-final for the play-offs.
“There were a lot of good times at Gloucester but the final step was always just missing. I have been to finals and have that experience of those sorts of games but now I want to go that extra step.”
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