Inside Rugby star's journey from leaving girlfriend behind to England heights
It has been three years since Tom Willis had his rugby career and life turned upside down, but the England No.8 is back on track and ready to thrive from that adversity. Willis was just 22 when his boyhood club Wasps entered administration, finding himself out of a job and scrambling around.
He moved across to France, joining Union Bordeaux-Bègles, making an immediate impact with the French side, who this year claimed the Champions Cup crown. Even so, behind the scenes the early months were not easy, while dreams of an international career were also contingent on him returning to England.
He did that by joining Saracens in 2023 and in his second season back, seems to have got back onto the path that had him tipped for the top.
Willis said: 'I fully expected to be at Wasps for the rest of my career. That is what I wanted to do. It's a weird one to get your head around. It was crazy after that, Wasps went bust, three weeks later I was moving to France by myself. My girlfriend couldn't get out of work for another two or three months, so she joined me at Christmas.
'The first three months in France on my own were pretty tough. Dealing with the Wasps stuff mentally, dealing with a new language, Bordeaux are an unbelievable club, and it was a great place to be, by the end I felt so settled.
'But I wanted to come back to England, I wanted to have a crack at playing for England and a great club like Saracens. I feel like I've achieved bits of that, which is great. I got a bit of a run in the England team in the Six Nations, which is unbelievable.
'It's been a crazy few years, but I feel like I've grown from it. You are very settled at a club, you come through the academy, you are there and potentially for the rest of your career. But experiencing different things mean you have no choice but to adapt and grow.'
Willis has certainly grown, and now 26, is playing some of the best rugby of his career and will be hoping to feature for an England XV against a France XV at the Allianz Stadium later this month. Even though Saracens missed out on the top four, paying for some inconsistency after a strong start to the season, Willis played well enough to be one of five players nominated for the league's player of the season gong.
He is now part of the England squad preparing for a tour of Argentina and the USA this summer, with the two Tests against the Pumas giving Willis the chance to go up against a couple of club colleagues.
Juan Martin Gonzalez and Lucio Cinti are both in Felipe Contepomi's Argentina squad, with the former regularly packing down alongside Willis in the Sarries back row. The prospect of them facing off is a tantalising one, and not just for the fans watching.
Willis said: 'He's an unbelievable player but he's also one of the nicest blokes you will ever meet. Anything he puts his hand to, he's unbelievable. He rips us up in forwards football before training as well.
'He's just fantastic and on the pitch, he does some stuff that I've never seen before. He pulls some unbelievable stuff off that I wouldn't dream of trying. It will be good to go up against him. There will be a few smiles, a tough contest with the two of us.
'Juan and Lucio have good English. They haven't given too much chat. We had a bit of a laugh before they left saying that we wouldn't speak to each other until the games. I'm excited to see him out there.'
Three years on from Willis having his career plans dramatically derailed, he is on course once again to fulfil his unquestioned potential.
Make sure to cheer on the England Men's XV against a France XV on Saturday 21 June at Allianz Stadium so together, we raise the roof. Tickets from £25, please visit www.englandrugby.com/xvtickets
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