England fast-tracks halfback to follow father

Scrumhalf Ben Youngs thought Martin Johnson had made a mistake when the England manager he told him he would be on the bench as his Leicester club do not have a game.

But Johnson, who turned 40 on Tuesday, was not having an early senior moment. "No, not for Leicester, for us," he told the 20-year-old, leaving him to eventually comprehend he would be among the replacements for the Calcutta Cup game against Scotland at Murrayfield.

It is hardly surprising that it took a while for the news to sink in for a player who began the season merely hoping to force his way into the Leicester first team.

However, the unexpected departure of Julien Dupuy and injuries to Harry Ellis opened the door at Welford Road and Youngs charged through.

He has been in inspired form in the first half of the season and after appearing for the Saxons and England "A" teams has been fast-tracked to the seniors.

"He was a bit surprised when I told him," Johnson said.

"A few people were surprised when Leicester let Julien Dupuy go but they knew they had a good young player there.

"He is an instinctive player and pretty talented and his basic skills have held up under pressure in those big games."

With only a handful of Premiership games under his belt, it was a surprise that Youngs was chosen ahead of Paul Hodgson as backup to Danny Care on Sunday morning (NZ time) but with his pedigree, an England cap was always on the horizon.

His father, Nick, was also Leicester scrumhalf and played six games for England in the early 1980s, including a famous Twickenham win over New Zealand.

Youngs junior appeared for England under-16s, 18s and 20s as well as for the Sevens team but nevertheless found himself somewhat daunted when first exposed to the senior squad.

"You dream about representing England but you look around at these guys - World Cup winners, guys who have achieved so much in the game - and it is a bit overwhelming," he told reporters.

"But they were all great and made me feel really welcome and of course I knew a few of the Leicester guys.

"For a couple of days it was a bit of a case of just being happy to be here but then you think I'd better get on with it.

"As a scrumhalf you have to be a bit confident and once you're on the training pitch you're out there bossing everyone out again."

Youngs said he had not had a chance to speak to his family though had somehow found time to exchange texts.

Father Nick played in England's defeat at Murrayfield in 1984 but remarkably Ben said he was unaware of his record.

"I've never really thought about what he achieved really and he's always been very relaxed about me playing," Youngs said.

"I've never really had that family competition but if we win on Saturday, now you've told me, I'll certainly let him know."

- Reuters