Dallaglio has lamented Jack Willis’ ‘tragic’ absence from England

Willis this week retained his Top14 Player of the Season title after another stellar campaign with Toulouse, who he joined in 2022 following the collapse of Wasps.

He has not represented England since the following year’s World Cup, owing to the RFU’s policy restricting selection to domestic-based players, and is now eligible to represent Ireland through his grandfather, who was born in Belfast.

Willis light-heartedly asked reporters to ‘do some digging’ and ‘find the way (around the rules)’ after accepting his award, while admitting ‘you know what you sacrifice’ as an English player based abroad.

But Dallaglio feels his fellow ex-Wasps back-rower should be given the opportunity to make his mark at Test level with another World Cup on the horizon.

“This rule is all about player control,” said Dallaglio, who was speaking at this week's EPCR season launch in Lyon for Premier Sports. “There’s a concern that if players go away to places like France, they won’t be made available for internationals or that their diets, regime and development would suffer.

“The opposite has proved to be true. Jack Willis is five times the player he was when he left the UK.

“It’s tragic from a personal level and on a national level, it seems crazy that the best English player plying his trade in France is ineligible to play for the national team having already appeared for England previously.

“Jack is a wonderful guy and every single player wants to play international rugby at the highest level. He has made no secret of that but unfortunately at the time when his previous club went into administration, he had no choice but to move overseas.

“To make a player choose between his international future and his family’s future is unacceptable.”

Dallaglio won 85 England caps over a 12-year international career which peaked with World Cup victory in 2003.

But he was also eligible to represent Ireland and Italy, and admitted he would have not have hesitated to seek other options had he found himself in Willis’ shoes.

“There’s no doubt that had I not got picked or had an illustrious career playing for England, I would have gone back to Ireland cap-in-hand and asked to play for Ireland,” he said.

“We are now in that position where Jack is eligible to do so. They may come knocking, they may not – Andy Farrell is a pretty astute coach, so he’d be pretty silly not to ask the question. England’s loss could be Ireland’s gain.

“It seems incredible this rule is still in place. Jack’s brother, Tom, was England’s best forward in the PREM last year and certainly their best performing player in the Champions Cup last year, and is already tearing up trees after two or three games at Bordeaux.

“England’s competitiveness in the World Cup would be strengthened by the inclusion of Tom and Jack Willis but that can’t be done under the existing rules. That’s a shame.”

Dallaglio was speaking ahead of the new season of the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup, which remain exclusively live on Premier Sports.

French clubs have lifted the Champions Cup in each of the past six seasons but Dallaglio feels the chasing pack can put up a fight this term, with the new campaign beginning on October 16.

“The French teams are the ones to beat but it is not impossible,” he said.

“Of the English sides, I thought Bath were the equal of Bordeaux last season in the semi-final.

“There were just a couple of moments where they didn’t quite take advantage, and few would have complained if Bath had gone on to win that game. They were very much part of that contest, so I still see them as the flag-bearers.

“I feel Saracens have got the bit between their teeth. They seem like a new and very different Saracens team, with Brendan (Venter) seeming very well established in that environment.

“And if South Africa decided, whether with Stormers or the Bulls, that they wanted to have a real crack at this competition, they have everything in their power to win it. They’ve got the players, the structure and the know-how.”

Lawrence Dallaglio is part of the Premier Sports team bringing every game live from the Investec Champions Cup. The new season kicks off on Friday October 16 with all twelve opening rounds live on Premier Sports including Gloucester hosting Bordeaux Begles, Bath welcome Montpellier, Bristol Bears face DHL Stormers in South Africa, Leicester Tigers away to Pau, Exeter Chiefs travel to Toulouse, and Northampton Saints host Cardiff.  To join in visit www.premiersports.com for 400+ live rugby games every season plus every game from the Rugby League World Cup.