After nerves and a restless night, Izuchukwu’s debut was almost marked with a dream try only for the score to be chalked off for a forward pass. The flanker admitted he “had a feeling” the ball had crept forward even as he dived across the whitewash.
Instead, he received his welcome to Test rugby through some heavy hits from Fijian forwards.
“There was a tackle at one point and I was there, ‘this is it, like, this is what it is now’ but it was good.”
While Saturday brought his first international minutes, Izuchukwu had toured with Andy Farrell’s squad for their drawn Test series with the Springboks in July, an experience he thinks was beneficial at the weekend.
“That was good, going to the stadiums and getting that feel, the emotional battle you need to bring to those games, it was good to see,” he said.
“That’s another level that you don’t really get in club rugby.
“The boys here in international games, they’re really up for it. You don’t really get to see that [provincially].”
Nothing, though, could prepare him for the feeling of taking the field as an international player.
“When you pull on the jersey, you feel a foot taller,” he added.
“Whenever you’re not playing, it can be hard to see that, but when you’re out there for the anthems, that huddle just before kick-off, it’s a special feeling.”
