Stuart Hogg reacts to England captain Owen Farrell stepping back from international rugby – ‘I was desperately sad’

Saracens fly-half Farrell was the subject of a statement released by his club on Wednesday that emphasised that the 32-year-old was taking the decision “in order to prioritise his and his family’s mental well-being.”

Farrell is England’s leading points scorer on the international stage and has represented his country 112 times, playing in a number of positions across the backline.

But he was targeted by boos during the World Cup in France, with Saracens boss Mark McCall branding the treatment he has received “shameful” and calling out some members of the media for creating a “social media pile on”.

Ahead of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby clash between Harlequins and Sale Sharks match, live on TNT Sports from the Stoop, former Scotland full-back Hogg said he felt “desperately sad” for Farrell and his family.

“I’m a massive believer in if you get the best person, you get the best rugby player,” said Hogg.

“Owen, being the leader and fierce competitor that he is, has taken a massive decision to concentrate on himself which is admirable, but it’s also selfless at the same time because he wants to give the best he can for his team, and does he really think he’s going to be at his best? Potentially not.

“I’m gutted for him because for me as a rugby fan, I want to see the best players in the best tournaments. That’s Owen Farrell, captain of England, captaining the side in the biggest tournament that I believe there is.

“It’s desperately sad for him because he’s a quality player and there’s an unfair narrative around [him], if I’m being brutally honest. Like everything in life now, you can do 95% of things spot on, and you’re judged on the 5% of things you’re working on or could potentially do better. That’s unfair.

“I really do feel for him because I know him as a person and as a player. The perception of him is a tough competitor; an absolute legend, leader of the game. Off the field, he’s an absolute gentleman. He’s there to share and make coffees for the boys, have glasses of wine with everybody, being in and amongst all the craic.

“I’m gutted for him and wish him all the very best because I want to see him playing his best rugby possible.”

Robshaw, a former England captain himself, also gave his thoughts on Farrell’s situation: “It’s huge. As captain of any team, you’re always that person who takes some of the praise and some of the criticism.

“What’s important looking at this situation is the narrative around it, like Mark McCall said. As pundits and journalists to criticise performance is one thing, but to form a narrative around something else is a little bit different.

“We’ve got to remember that Owen Farrell, over the last 12 years, has been one of England’s best players every single week. He is England’s top points scorer, more than Jonny Wilkinson or anyone else. It’s absolutely amazing, but for whatever reason, because he doesn’t want to go and see the media or give them the answers they want to hear – the right sound bites – they spin that a bit and then other people can jump on that, unfortunately.

“He’s been brilliant for England, and he’ll be a huge loss, and it’ll be interesting to see now that a lot of players almost don’t want to be captain. They just want to go and play rugby, and for me, when I captained England, and when that captaincy was taken away from me, it was almost like a huge relief.

“Of course I loved that, and it was sad, but then you [regain] your focus, and we may even see it with Owen with that situation in the future, where he comes back and enjoys playing rugby again.”

Monye, who was capped 14 times by England, said: “It’s odd and almost sad in the same way that it’s probably taken a bit of a deep breath and a ‘I don’t have to deal with that anymore.’ Deal with what? Being the England captain, something that he’s committed his whole life to.

“That’s the [mis]fortune of circumstances that we find ourselves in. It’s such a shame to find a person that loves the game so much, over the last few months figuring and finding out through narratives that have been created through social media pile-ons that the game hasn’t loved him in the same way that he’s put himself in that position.

“The one thing none of us ever know is what’s going on in someone’s life and how long he’s had to carry this burden for. You also don’t understand the impact that it has on the wider community because everyone speaks about Owen Farrell, but he’s also a husband and father. If that negative impact is [affecting] his family, then he’s obviously as a human being going to put them first.

“I’ve seen a lot of stuff, that people are ‘sorry’, and that’s great, but within that ‘sorry’, there’s a bit of guilt as well, in some people’s conversations in things they may have said.

He added: “Hopefully everyone’s reflected over it in the words he’s used and the actions he’s taken, but you have to own your impact as well as your intent. If your intent is to start a debate, but then the impact is creating a pile-on, then you have to get balance in that. It’s a very difficult situation which ultimately absolutely no one wins out of.”