Marcus Smith exclusive: 'I understand the benefits of kicking – Steve Borthwick knows that'

Marcus Smith has not been given many reasons to smile of late. England's November defeat to South Africa ravaged his right ankle and also brought the curtain down on a longstanding relationship with Eddie Jones while his club Harlequins have lost three on the bounce.

Yet, as we sit at his club's training ground, Smith beams. On Sunday, the Harlequins fly-half will conclude the longest injury recovery of his professional career.

His injury hiatus – spent with family in Brighton - has given him time to refresh, reflect and rejuvenate, using the fires of the past to fuel his excitement for the future. That is from where that smile hails; an unwavering belief that a phoenix is about to emerge from the ashes. So, are we witnessing the rebirth of Smith?

“I guess you could say that,” Smith tells Telegraph Sport ahead of an enticing match-up with Finn Russell's Racing 92 in Paris. “But it’s just an adaptation of my game. I’m constantly evolving and identifying things I could be better at. One thing I targeted this year was my body composition and looking after myself.

“The injury break has allowed me to re-think and re-evaluate some of my goals. It’s a big year and I’ve been able to take stock of the first five years in my career and almost… go again.

“I focused a lot on my recovery and my sleep; trying to make simple habits that will benefit me not just now but for the rest of my life and career. It was nice to get away from everything and it gave me more hunger and desire to get back to training.”

Smith’s talent and his box-office allure have never been in question. It was his impish audacity that spearheaded Harlequins to their first Premiership title in nine years in a manner that had never been seen before – and might never be seen again.

The question, after England’s attacking struggles in the autumn, is how does he consistently translate his once-in-a-generation talent onto the international stage, where defences are becoming ever more penurious. And, in competition with the more prosaic Owen Farrell and George Ford, the question remains whether his poetic Harlequinade will chime with Steve Borthwick’s pragmatism.

“There are a lot of similarities in how we played and how Leicester played,” Smith says. “In the season we won the league, we kicked the ball a lot – but we varied our kicks: attacking kicks off either me or Danny [Care]. It’s just about understanding and evolving so that I understand the benefits of that side of the game as much as the other parts of the game. They are all equal; nothing’s more important than anything else.

‘Being able to pick Borthwick’s brains was brilliant’

“I had a really good meeting with Steve. I was in camps when I was younger when he was there as an assistant coach to Eddie. Our paths did not cross that often but to have a one-on-one chat with him was brilliant to understand how he operates. I missed the camp earlier in the week so it was nice to know that I’m still in the loop and being able to pick his brains for an hour was brilliant.”

It is easy to forget that Smith is just 23. He seems to have been on the scene for yonks – and, in a way, he has. Much longer than the average 23-year-old at least. Smith made his Harlequins debut in 2017 and a non-capped England cap followed in 2019, before the bona fide debut in 2021. Allied with his precociousness, however, some of that schoolboy charm remains. During a campaign photoshoot for Optimum Nutrition – fittingly dubbed ‘More in all of us’ – Smith sends an SOS to academy hooker, Jack Doorey-Palmer, to furnish the fly-half with a rugby ball for his snaps. Smith promises his team-mate “a coffee and a millionaire's shortbread” as payment. It is a reminder that, on the international rugby landscape, Smith is still a kid.

“I’ve only played 17 times and I’m still only young in terms of a fly-half’s career,” Smith says. “Hopefully I get many more opportunities in the future but I have to work hard and train hard. I know there are parts of my game that I need to develop and improve and I’m working my hardest to do that.

“I’ve only played professionally for five years! If you look around the world, throughout history, all the best fly-halves peak around 29, 30 – so I’m still miles off that. But I have developed parts of my game from when I started out: my kicking game – both posts and around the pitch - has improved; my defence has improved; as has my attack. And I feel I’ve gotten stronger and faster.

“The goal is to be the best player in the world. As a fly-half, I want to have an all-court game: I want to kick my goals when my team needs me to, I want to be able to put my team in the areas that they want to be in to build pressure and score in the wet and wind and, then, when it dries up, I want to showcase my running game – which is a strength of mine. It has to be balanced across all the aspects of my game.”

‘I’m massively grateful to Eddie’

If, as expected, Smith is named in Borthwick’s England squad on Monday, then he will be trading one mentor for another. While Jones might have departed these shores, Nick Evans, the man in charge of Harlequins' attack, was last week given the keys to England's offence during the Six Nations. Smith believes that England's attack was “predictable at times” during the autumn, but that Evans' obsession with the “finer details” can get them back on the straight and narrow.

“He’s brilliant,” Smith says. “I’ve known him since I was 17,18 and he’s always had his arm around me and supported me through the ups and downs. He has taught me a lot on the field – as well as around talking to players and getting the best out of them in meetings. I know the way he thinks, his ideology, and the way he sees the game so hopefully that will give me an advantage when I’m trying to deal with him and have a discussion about tactics or potential opportunities. Fingers crossed it’s a partnership that continues at international level.

“But I’m massively grateful to Eddie. When I was young, he watched me at Brighton College and brought me in to train while I was still at school. Not many people knew about that but he always looked after me. He challenged me when I needed to be challenged – on and off the pitch – but he was always there for advice.”

Another who has always been there to advise Smith is arguably the greatest sounding board for any English fly-half to possess: Jonny Wilkinson. England’s World Cup-winning fly-half's injury torment was well documented, and Smith has been in touch regarding his latest injury setback.

Smith says: “He said it happens to everyone and I should use it as a weapon to come back stronger.”

Time will tell if Smith has heeded the legend’s advice but, if that smile is anything to go by, the omens are good.