England star Jonny May reveals how his parents helped ignite international career ahead of World Cup milestone

Half-century up: Jonny May will earn his 50th cap for England against Australia in Oita
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Will Macpherson16 October 2019

Almost every sportsperson owes a debt of gratitude to their parents. Reaching the top requires pastoral support - not to mention time, lifts and cash.

But Jonny May knows that better than most that he owes his parents for his England career, for it was a quiet dinner with them rather than a night on the tiles with team-mates that guaranteed him a Test debut.

49 matches later, he sits on the brink of a milestone on the grandest stage, against Australia in Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final.

Peter and Hazel May were in Argentina in 2013, as May vied for an international debut. “I was looking around, it was Lions year and I thought ‘I’m probably going to get a game’,” he said.

May was not selected for the first of two Tests, with Christian Wade and David Strettle picked on the wings. For the second match, Strettle was dropped and Marland Yarde selected to debut. Still May had to wait.

“I didn’t feel ashamed but I didn’t feel great because my parents were out there and it looked like I wasn’t going to get a game,” he said.

“But then Christian got called up for the Lions on the morning of the game and basically because my mum and dad were out, I went out for dinner with them while all the other non-23 players went out on the p**s.

“So I’ll always remember my first cap because it didn’t really go how I’d have thought. It’s funny how it works out and I ended up starting that game, and what was quite a challenging couple of weeks finished on a good note as my parents got to watch me play and I got my first cap. It all worked out in the end.”

Indeed it did. May took a little time to find his feet in Test rugby, with his first try - a dizzying early stunner against New Zealand - coming after eight matches.

But, with 16 tries in the last two years, he has caught fire and heads into quarter-final weekend as one of the world game’s leading wingers.

May, 29, has pace to burn, while his reading of the game and security under the high ball have improved immeasurably. He is sixth on England’s all-time try-scoring chart with 25.

In Pictures | England vs Argentina, Rugby World Cup | 05/11/2019

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May’s team-mates speak not just of his quirks and idiosyncrasies of his personality but his relentless drive for improvement and it is clear he puts himself under immense pressure, first to earn a spot in the team, then to keep it.

Wing is probably England’s most competitive position, with Anthony Watson, Jack Nowell and Joe Cokanasiga jostling for places. May, though, is Eddie Jones’s first choice.

“I’ve changed a lot, not just as a rugby player but as a person as well along the journey,” he said. “It is chaotic really and challenging to do. You’re under pressure.

“I’m sitting here now, I’ve got goosebumps because I’m so excited to go out there this weekend and try to raise the bar and stick to what I’ve done every week.

“I’ve probably just tried to be a bit more serious. I have matured. I have become more focused, maybe a little bit more introverted as the years have gone on. That is probably a result of the pressure I’ve put on myself.”

May relieves that pressure by immersing himself in home comforts, and family. “Being under the pressure you are under, and when you really are obsessed with the game, it puts you under strain mentally,” he said.

“To have my mum, dad, my wife and sister... they are the people I can really talk to. From five to now, what they have been able to give me and how they have supported me, I wouldn’t have been able to do it without those guys.”

This Saturday, May faces a new challenge - a World Cup knockout match. That seems an ideal time for him to pause for reflection.

“I wouldn’t change any of it,” said May. "That’s what I’m proud of. I wouldn’t say I’ve cut a corner, I’ve just got stuck to it, every day.

“I’ve had injuries, I’ve been picked, I’ve not been picked, I’ve had terrible games and good times as well.

"That’s how it has got to be, the same every week in terms of striving to get better."

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