Joe Marler has spoken publicly on his decision to retire from international rugby. The Harlequins prop explained that an anxiety drove him to try to get 'outs' so that he would miss England duty.
Marler cited a desire to spend more time with his family when making the decision and told the Rugby Pod that he made the decision after the Gallagher Premiership loss against Bristol last month.
The 28-year-old said he "played like an absolute helmet, which often happened around England time." He accepted he was "talking quite honestly and frankly" before going on to describe the mood he was in prior to England camps.
The anxiety I'd get about having to leave and go away again would start to manifest in giving away even more dull penalties and looking for outs. Looking for a yellow card and looking for a red card because if I could pick up a ban then that was an easy way out without actually pulling the trigger.
Marler also served a suspension during the Autumn Internationals last year after pleading guilty to an elbow strike.
Joe Marler has been banned for three weeks after this incident against Wasps.
He's pleaded guilty to striking with his elbow. pic.twitter.com/b0npJyZNKK
— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) October 25, 2017
In the end, he rang England coach Eddie Jones and outlined the issue to him. "I rang Eddie up on the Sunday and was pretty honest with him. He said 'I appreciate your honesty. Good on you, all the best'. It was short."
Subsequently, Marler took to Twitter to clarify his remarks. He said that he purely meant to articulate his mood before camps and did not set out to get banned.
I would like to clarify my comments on @TheRugbyPod this morning that have been taken out of context. I have never deliberately done anything on a rugby pitch – or off it – to get a ban..... 1/2
— Joe Marler (@JoeMarler) October 2, 2018
..... I was simply reflecting on my occasional irrational behaviour when England camps were looming and trying to understand my actions a little bit better. 2/2
— Joe Marler (@JoeMarler) October 2, 2018
The full interview is well worth a listen and can be found here.
