Back in February, after being dropped from England’s Six Nations squad, Max Ojomoh was wandering through the Moroccan coastal city of Agadir.
His main concern, after being granted a holiday, was some much-needed sun and occasionally perusing the country’s famous souks. He opted for the latter at the same time England hosted Ireland in this year’s Championship. ‘My phone was blowing up,’ said Ojomoh, the Bath and England centre.
‘I was like “Oh my God, we need to get to a pub to watch the game.” I was checking out the markets and I watched the game there. It was an Irish bar, of course!’
Ojomoh’s mobile was pinging for all the wrong reasons. His friends and family were alerting him to England’s quick capitulation at the hands of the men in green. It was tough viewing for anyone with a love for English rugby, but especially so for Ojomoh given he had hoped to be involved on the field instead of being nearly 2,000 miles away in northern Africa.
The Six Nations passed him by without a second of on-field action. Despite producing a player-of-the-match performance after receiving a late call-up to start England’s final autumn Test with Argentina, Ojomoh was constantly overlooked by national head coach Steve Borthwick.
‘I’ve been in and out of the England squad since I was 21,’ Ojomoh said.
‘So, how long are you going to be hurt by something before you’re just like “Whatever.” I’ve been through this process so many times. When I was young and naive I used to think “F****** hell, I’m going to end up with 70 caps. I’ve made it now.”
Max Ojomoh was man of the match against Argentina last autumn, scoring a try and providing two assists in the 27-23 victory. But he has not played for the Red Rose since
‘But that’s not the case. Look at George Ford. He’s a centurion, but it’s not like he’s been getting cap after cap after cap.
‘He’s had highs and lows the whole time. That’s just the way some international careers go.’
Ojomoh only made his full England debut against the USA last summer and then started against Argentina, coming in at the 11th hour to replace Fraser Dingwall. The strength of his Pumas display – which included a try and a brilliant cross-kick assist for Immanuel Feyi-Waboso – was a serious statement of intent.
It felt like a coming-of-age performance, the sort which marked him out as the man likely to wear the white No 12 shirt long term.
Come the Six Nations though, Ojomoh was not even a regular squad presence. Borthwick preferred Dingwall and then Seb Atkinson at inside centre, Ojomoh failing to get a game despite England producing what was statistically their worst ever Six Nations.
‘I really enjoyed it. Looking back on it now, I’m just happy I got to put my stamp on international rugby,’ Ojomoh said of his Argentina performance. ‘If that’s the last of it, well it was a pretty good last game, wasn’t it? I’m pretty content about it.
‘That’s international rugby. You never know when your last game is. There are lads who have finished on 97 caps and there are lads who have finished on three or four. Nothing is ever promised. You just have to do what you can with the opportunities.
‘In the autumn, I was just glad I got to go out there and show my game. The difference from when I was in the (England) squad at 21 was that I was in there on potential. You’re constantly trying to show what you can do.
‘Now, I’m 25 and everyone knows exactly what I can bring. If you like it, you love it. If you don’t like it, you don’t. I don’t really mind. At the end of the day, you can’t please everyone.’
Ojomoh has been a central cog in the resurgence of Bath, helping them to a treble of trophies last season. He is arguably in the peak of his career, but remains remarkably phlegmatic about being ignored by England in the campaign just gone.
‘How can I be worried about selection for England when I’m bloody worried about selection for my club?’ Ojomoh responds.
Ojomoh is now focused on playing a regular role for his club Bath
Fair point. Ojomoh’s strengths are obvious. He provides a second ball-playing option at No 12 and as Test rugby becomes increasingly more attack-focused, that could be a priceless asset for England.
It is certainly appreciated at Bath, who could both retain their PREM Rugby title and win the Investec Champions Cup this season under Johann van Graan’s tutelage. Ojomoh dovetails nicely with Finn Russell at club level. Bath face Saracens in the last 16 of the Champions Cup on Saturday.
‘I’ve never been comfortably first choice,’ Ojomoh said. ‘When I first came through at Bath, I was scrapping to play on the wing or off the bench.
‘When I started getting into England camps, I was never first choice here. I’m still not first choice. That’s kind of the chip on my shoulder. I’m never comfortable with where I’m at, which I think is a good thing.
‘If I don’t get picked (by England) again, I can look back when I retire and say “Wow, I had a good career and I thought I was a good player.”
‘That’s all you need. There is a lot more to life than just these 10 years of a career.’
Ojomoh’s words could be mistaken for arrogance or carelessness. But that is absolutely not the case, even if you get the impression his laidback demeanour is the polar opposite of how Borthwick works. Maybe that’s the issue. Regardless, Ojomoh hopes to make it to next year’s World Cup.
What has Borthwick asked him to work on to earn a Test spot? ‘Specifics would be post-contact metres in the carry, defensive intensity and I’m not running enough when I play,’ Ojomoh said. ‘That’s a big thing – overall work rate.
‘But the good thing is, they (England) don’t really question my super strength. You can’t be too hell bent on these things because they’ll break you.
‘That’s what I’ve learned over the years with not being picked. No amount of wanting something to happen is going to make it happen more.’
Ojomoh, surely, will soon get another chance. Strong showings for Bath – for whom his former England international father Steve also played – will undoubtedly help too. ‘My dad’s seen my improvement as a player and he just says cream always rises to the top,’ Ojomoh said.
‘I don’t get that stressed by selection because if I’m actually good, at the end of the day when all is said and done, the accolades will speak for themselves. Sometimes I surprise myself. Take that cross-field kick against Argentina.
Ojomoh scored in the 23-21 PREM Rugby final against Leicester at Twickenham last June
… and celebrated the club’s success with his father who had watched on from the stands
‘I’ve never done that in the PREM. It just felt it was the right thing at the right time and I executed it.’
For now, Ojomoh’s focus is fully on Bath. After winning Europe’s second tier Challenge Cup competition last term, the Champions Cup is a big target for the club recently boosted by further investment from the billionaire businessman James Dyson.
This week, the entrance to Bath’s luxurious Farleigh House training complex was decked out with black flags to reflect the colour of the club’s European kit and a big European clash.
At the entrance, Van Graan posted a banner which read ‘choose greatness.’ On the television screen in reception, next to the club’s three trophies they won last season, it states the number of games and days left in the season.
Van Graan is a meticulous operator with signs on European glory.
‘It’s definitely an ambition of the club,’ Ojomoh said. ‘Johann never fails to impress. I don’t know what it is, but he just gets it. When I drove in for the first time this week and the black flags were up and the sign was there that said ‘choose greatness’, I messaged my missus and said: “This is a serious week I’m about to lock into here!”’
Bath are certainly on the right track for greatness and in time, Ojomoh could get there too.
He just needs to be given another opportunity with England to prove it. It’s one you have to feel he deserves.
