After every game, Chandler Cunningham-South receives a message via WhatsApp from his father, who is on his farm in New Zealand, assessing the performance of the New England backline. They are not short. “It actually looks like a script and you have to click ‘read more’,” he laughs. “I can’t get a rating, it would be harsh so I don’t want to see it. This is good, all motivational and helpful.”
There are rapid rises and there are players like Cunningham-South who have rocketed into Test rugby. Swapping Sidcup for New Zealand when he was four, Canterbury returned to these shores as a teenager after failing to find a place in the academy. Now, at 20, Cunningham-South is an England international and the youngest player in Steve Borthwick’s squad.
It’s not hard to see why Borthwick and England loved him; Hit, carry and tackle every rock with a big frame and maximum intent. If he had joined Canterbury’s squad there was a good chance he would be lost to English rugby for good. A package was prepared and sent out, sparked by interest from the London Irish, who despite enjoying living at Lincoln University outside Christchurch were keen to enter a professional academy environment. Given the Exiles’ excellent record in developing young players under Declan Kidney, Les Kiss and Jonathan Fisher before their sad deaths last year, what better environment could there be for a raw but talented prospect to learn how to do the job?
“They were all very nice guys and helped me a lot,” Cunningham-South says. “They improved me a lot, especially the professional side, and even personally. I was only 18, so not only did they have to coach, they had to help me almost on a personal level, they had to make sure I was okay, which was nice, they were always checking on me and telling me I was doing okay. “I’m having fun.”
The first sign that Cunningham-South might be a bit special was that he made his debut for England’s Under-20s before playing for the club. The family stays at their home in Wellsford, surrounded by cattle, about 50 miles north of Auckland. “Off the grid, there isn’t much of a service there,” adds Cunningham-South, which seems like the opposite of running in front of 80,000-plus people at Twickenham. “Maybe when I grow up I’ll be more interested in this kind of thing, but I’m more of a city kid now,” he admits with a smile.
His mother will be the last member of the family to arrive ahead of England’s match against Ireland next weekend. Without the support network in London, the Irish and the Harlequins now traveling around the world would be incredibly daunting for a youngster, but when you hear Cunningham-South describe how he managed to sneak in there with Canterbury, you’re hit with a whole host of mental issues. force. “I had this belief in myself that I was meant to be in a professional environment. once upon a time someone [the academies] “If he was willing to give me an opportunity, I would work hard there and take the right steps to play in the professional game.”
Two things have helped Cunningham-South make Twickenham his home away from home. The first is that his accent has faded. “He’s gone now,” he says. “When I first came here I had a full Kiwi accent and I lost that while I was here. This sometimes comes up when I talk to my friends on the phone. The second was the process of learning the history of English rugby and, rather hilariously, learning the true identity of his new mentor: 2003 Rugby World Cup winner Richard Hill.
“I’m back [Irish] He said there was a guy who just kept talking to me and giving me this feedback and things for me to work on and seemed to really know what was going on and I couldn’t quite remember his name,” Cunningham-South said of his experiences with the England Under-20s.
“I later found out it was Richard Hill from the guys in Ireland and a few sessions later he told me he had won the World Cup and knew a bit about rugby!”
‘Twickenham is a really great place to play’
Hill doesn’t show off his medal or invite Cunningham-South to the obligatory viewing of England’s 2003 victory, but having a mentor of this quality on hand seems invaluable. Nothing could have prepared Cunningham-South for his first run to Twickenham. “It’s great to play there. You don’t realize how big the stadium is until you step onto the field and look up. It just doesn’t seem to stop. It’s so loud, so passionate, it’s just a great place to play.”
Stating that coming to the England camp undoubtedly accelerated his development, the player noted that his ability to “assume information” in formation games has accelerated.
Given how well Cunningham-South has performed so far off the bench, a first Test start doesn’t seem too far off. Surprising indeed, considering he joined London Irish’s academy just over two years ago.
“I haven’t had a chance to stop and think and I have to look forward to the next step. I don’t like looking back and dwelling on things. A lot of good and bad things happened, but they all happened for the right reasons, I guess. I’m performing well, and I’m happy and grateful for that.” He’s right. Why pause and evaluate when everything is trending upward for Cunningham-South?