England vs New Zealand: Maro Itoje promises to clean up his act but won’t compromise his confrontational style

After receiving a yellow card inside 16 minutes last weekend, Itoje is fully aware he needs to find the line against the All Blacks

Maro Itoje accepts that he must learn where the line is and not cross it in order to avoid a repeat of last weekend’s early sin-binning against the All Blacks on Saturday.

The 24-year-old has been tasked with leading England’s intensity in order to disrupt New Zealand’s game, with the hope being a rare victory over the world’s No 1-ranked side. But it is a thin line between disruption and falling foul of the law, and while it is something that the All Blacks have excelled at in recent years, Itoje found out the repercussions the hard way.

Last week’s Test against South Africa was barely three minutes old before Itoje was penalised by referee Angus Garder for a lineout infringement as he looked to get his hands on Eben Etzebeth at the earliest opportunity. A few minutes later he was given a dressing down, and when he was judged to have killed the ball after a try-saving tackle on scrum-half Ivan van Zyl, Gardner sent Itoje for 10 minutes in the sin-bin with just 16 minutes on the clock.

“I wasn’t expecting it really, so I guess so,” Itoje said of his surprise at seeing yellow so early in the match. “I have to deal with the situation better.

“I think from my point of view I need to adapt to the referee. Every referee has slightly different interpretations and the type of player I am, I need to be competitive and abrasive but I need to adapt to the situation quicker than I did on the weekend.

“The way I play is fairly on the line and I just have to react to the referee better and understand what he is and isn’t going to let go and be more accurate. Obviously it’s not easy. If it was easy we wouldn’t be having this conversation.

“As with every game I play, I have watched the game back and realised where I could have done better and that first 15 or so minutes is definitely a period of the game I could have executed better.”

Since Jones took charge of the side, Itoje has emerged as an integral part of this current England side, but he is also one of the most penalised, with only penalty-machine Dan Cole giving away more than the second-row over the last three years. But Jones will not panic over his star forward, and believes that given his rapid development since being given his debut by the Australian in his very first match at the helm will only continue to ensure he reaches the top of the game.

“He’s an amazing competitor. That boy is going to be one of the best players in the world,” Jones said this week. “His development over the last two years has been outstanding.

“He’s learning. There’s a fine edge between being super-competitive and giving away penalties. He’s learning that all the time and it’s just another part of his learning process.”

Maro Itoje accepts he must improve his discipline to avoid more yellow cards (AFP/Getty)

Part of his rapid education was the British and Irish Lions tour last year, when he emerged as a figurehead of the touring party’s ferocity in the second Test that led to the bulk of the 34,500 fans in attendance chanting the now famous song of “Oh Maro Itoje!”

“It was a cool moment for me,” he recalls. “Fortunately my family were there so they were able to enjoy that too. But that is definitely one memory that will stick with me for a while.”

That experience on tour gave Itoje a good idea of what to expect at Twickenham on Saturday, and combined with the 2014 Junior World Championship – in which Itoje captain England to victory on New Zealand soil – he believes he understands what it means to be an All Black and why that makes them so dangerous to other teams.

He said: “It’s definitely a challenge. Rugby is part of the way of life over there. All the players are very passionate. They live, eat and breathe rugby – so when you go up against that, you’re going up a very passionate people.

“They’re very skilled. Very skilled players, smart players, and they’re very accurate as well.

Itoje was given a number of warnings from referee Angus Gardner (Getty)

“Fortunately enough for me, I’ve been part of that tour. We spent six weeks in New Zealand, which is obviously a very long time. Not only did we play New Zealand, we played pretty much all their Super Rugby teams, so it definitely gives you a flavour, and a taste, how they play, and the difference between the way they play down there and the way we play up there.

“I would say down there they play a bit more running rugby. Up in the northern hemisphere we play a bit more of a structured game. Their game is a bit more free-flowing.”