Life is good for Jack Willis. He and his fiancée Megan, who got engaged at the seaside three months ago, welcomed a daughter into the world last week. Together with Enzo, their two-year-old son, the family is thoroughly enjoying the south of France.
Willis was relieved to return to the field against Toulon two days before Christmas after recovering from neck surgery. He remains immensely grateful to Toulouse, the club he helped to the Top 14 title, and is eager to help them win a sixth European crown.
But the 27-year-old also wears his heart on his sleeve. When mentioning the World Cup, he can only be honest. Willis stormed forward to score with the final move of England's 71-0 win over Chile. Days later, however, his tournament was over after that one performance. Willis woke up with reduced strength in his left arm, but still tried to push through and put himself in the frame to face Samoa. A bang during training made matters worse and scans revealed a bulging disc pressing on the nerve supply.
"I talked to the surgeon on Tuesday night, I believe," Willis recalled. "Then I went back to England at 6am the next morning to see if an injection would work. I couldn't go back to the team environment or say goodbye to everyone."
It is not unfair to suggest that the hollow experience represented another blip in a rollercoaster year, with the devastating low of Wasps' demise and the dizzying high of beating La Rochelle in the Top 14 decider. Willis started four Six Nations matches but had no World Cup playing time. Frankly, he wonders if he "really added anything to the group."
When he signed for Toulouse last November, Willis became a pawn in a lively debate over England's eligibility rules. Discussions have hardly died down since then, with the predicament of Henry Arundell opting to stay at Racing 92 rather than return to the Premier League only reinforcing opinions on both sides. Willis powerfully describes two aspects of his situation. Firstly, he felt the goalposts were being moved during his extension negotiations with Toulouse. Secondly, Willis reiterates the uncertainty he and Arundell, formerly of London Irish, found themselves in.
The story continues
"For me, the choice to stay here was based on being in a place where I would be pushed to be the best I could be," he says. "There has been some change in whether the rule could change. When I signed, it was on track to change. Now it has done the opposite.
"I wouldn't change my decision because I feel I made the right choice for me, my career and my family. I think one thing that sometimes gets pushed aside is the fact that every player at Wasps, Worcester and London Irish was let down by that club's system and let down quite badly, to the point where you can't stand for could provide for your family in the months that followed.
"There are friends of mine who still haven't found another job. And you won't get over that quickly or get your confidence back immediately. Toulouse took me in when I had no other offer in England. The opportunity they have given me is incredible and I will always give everything I have for the club."
Uniquely, during last year's Six Nations, Willis had been something of a guinea pig for the potential logistics if Rugby Football Union rules were changed and players from foreign leagues could represent England again. He had to skip the Channel a few times and was overlooked in the opener against Scotland after missing the first week of training, but believes the system can work.
"I would definitely do it again," Willis confirms. 'That's the first thing I would say. The second point is that Toulouse could not provide more support. After not being selected for the Scotland game because I hadn't trained the week before, I was gutted. But the club said: 'look, what do you have to do?' They asked if I wanted to go back for eight weeks and be there the whole time. We had a very open dialogue between me, Richard Hill [the England team manager] and the boys here.
"Steve [Borthwick, the England head coach] and Hilly were brilliant, as was Toulouse. We have shown that it can work, but the RFU must make decisions about what they think is best for the future. I can't sit here and comment on that. From a personal perspective, I want to be here and play for England. They have to take much more into account than just that. I understand that."
Willis is known as a crafty, disruptive defender and is looking to broaden his horizons as a backrower. "If I look back at some of my early Wasps games it would have been 'catch the ball, head down, hold on to it'," he laughs. "If you want to add both offense and defense here, you have to open up your game." He does a lot of extra work after training with David Mélé, assistant coach to Ugo Mola, and admires how Toulouse encourages players to push boundaries during team training.
Willis appears to have already developed a strong affinity with the supporters. He rates the Top 14 final at the Stade de France, a thrilling affair sealed by Romain Ntamack's miracle try, as the best atmosphere he has ever experienced. Raucous celebrations followed and Willis doesn't mind admitting he welled up during a victory parade as he watched about 25,000 people crowd the city's Le Capitole Square from the team bus.
Earlier this month, Borthwick expressed his wish for Arundell and Joe Marchant to return to Premier League clubs, Racing 92 and Stade Francais respectively, to be available ahead of the 2027 World Cup. Contrary to Will Carling's claim that England's duty is slipping away from the "pinnacle" of players' ambitions, Willis insists that wearing a white shirt "will always be a priority". But he will also play in big club matches.
With the added responsibility of a young family, Willis says a potential move cannot be rushed. "Whatever chance there is to bring me back should be good in many ways," he adds. "That is always the case when you move. Here and now, after all the turbulence I had last year, I'm enjoying a bit of stability in the coming years and focusing on how good I can be for this club.
"It's not as simple as saying, 'Move your life back to England now.' There must be other factors that align. I want to make one thing clear: I will always want to play for England. I realize how competitive it is. It was clear to me, given the stage I'm in and given the little involvement I had in the World Cup, that I need to focus on my improvement so that hopefully I can come back - or [be ready] if the rule changes - and be able to appear more regularly. That has to mean playing rugby wherever I am and improving every game."
The biggest compliment you can give Willis is that he has truly enriched a team made up of stars like Julien Marchand, Cyril Baille, Emmanuel Meafou, Thomas Ramos, Ange Capuozzo and the brightest of them all in Antoine Dupont. This weekend against Bath, Willis will start in the back row, which also features Anthony Jelonch and François Cros. Blair Kinghorn, the dashing full-back from Scotland, has also settled in well. Toulouse lost to Leinster in the Champions Cup semi-final last year, with Willis impressively combative in defeat. Beating Bath, having already beaten Cardiff, Harlequins and Ulster, should see Mola's side at home for the last 16 and beyond in the competition. Willis points out that a big league match against Racing 92 precedes the Six Nations, a tournament that could be a tough match for him.
"I am an England supporter and also someone who is fortunate to have played for them," he says. "I will always keep an eye on how things go and I wish the boys in the squad and the coaches all the best for the tournament. But I can't worry about it too much. I can't look at it and think, 'I'm missing something.' I have to think, 'This is my reality.'"
"I feel comfortable with the decision I made. If I'm honest, things have changed. I thought maybe things were still open and things were changing, but that's the way the world works. I am very grateful for the opportunity I have now."
The opportunity now for Willis is to continue to excel for Toulouse and to remind people in England, and around the world, of his rare ability to influence matches. Everything else is beyond his control.
