Every time Ben Earl leaves the players’ tunnel for a match – and the next one could be a big one, because England No.8 against the All Blacks at Twickenham next Saturday – he pauses and raises his hands and eyes to the sky.

“It’s just a personal prayer that I always say,” Earl says. I. “It’s a time to reflect and be grateful for everything you do and why you do it.

“I love this idea of ​​using God’s gifts and what He has given you. And I’ve been fortunate enough to have a skill set, or a talent set, like all of us here, and to try to make the most of it and try to influence people in positive way.

It’s a compelling message, delivered with a relaxed look by Earl in response to a question about his Christian faith, as we chat during a break at England’s Costa Brava training camp, prepare for the fall series which brings New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Japan to Twickenham on successive weekends.

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As Earl says, “I’m definitely not one to say, ‘This is how you should live your life or not live your life.’ What I can say is that I like to live my life a certain way – or try to, I don’t always succeed – and it’s nice to have that, and if anyone someone wants to talk about it, it doesn’t matter.

In this way, he feels comfortable tackling a subject that is often taboo, or too personal, sensitive or controversial. To understand a little more this young man of 26 years old from Saracens who has come to prominence with his club and country over the last 18 months or so.

Earl says his family wasn’t particularly religious – he went to church on Christmas Eve, that sort of thing – but he was a teenager, a boarder at Tonbridge School in Kent, stressed by exams and life in general, when the daily walk to and from the chapel transformed into something different; something more impactful and engaging.

“I came to my faith and my religion quite late in life,” he says. “I was confirmed when I was 17 or 18 years old.

“I was asking ‘what is this about? why are people invested in this? And the lessons, the morals you gain, the perspective you get are enormous.

“I found a lot of comfort there, as a very down to earth, humble, secure, sounding board companion. You have something to look back on, the ups and downs of professional sport, the frustrations you may encounter – whether it’s selection, the relationships you may have in rugby, injuries or setbacks.

“It’s nice to have something that goes beyond sports, something that goes beyond family at the end of the day. That you are here for a greater purpose. That there is something else, a reason why you are here.

Earl attends church midweek or on a Sunday, games permitting, at St Peter’s in Notting Hill. Sometimes he is accompanied by his teammate Maro Itoje. Is this a traditional C of E mass? “No, very strange service,” Earl said, smiling.

“A group that plays for a few weeks, and a really young, progressive and innovative service. It’s great. I’m not a great singer, I’m pretty happy in the back, I understand everything.

Earl doesn’t read the Bible “as much as I’d like,” but he currently does Joshua: a parable for today by Joseph Girzone.

“It’s a modern parable from the life of Jesus. How it would be received in modern society. I really appreciate that.

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He has a tattoo of a cross on the inside of his right bicep. “I got it when I was 18. I had a cross on a necklace that broke, I took it to a tattoo parlor and said ‘do this’. I didn’t tell my mother but she noticed it when I was playing.

Looking back, Earl says he was a “terrible” loser and winner as a child playing “non-stop golf” and cricket with his younger brother James, who is now a professional golfer in the United States and New Year’s trip. Zealand match.

Earl played Kent under-13 cricket with future England batter Zak Crawley, who remains a friend; he’s a four-handicap golfer; he supports Arsenal and enjoyed being present during the recent victory against PSG; he loves watching Australian rugby league and relished the opportunity in Spain to chat with Cameron Ciraldo, head coach of NRL team the Canterbury Bulldogs and a guest at England training.

“I would have loved to play in the league, but it’s too late now,” Earl says. But he is developing a new sporting skill.

After watching a Ronnie O’Sullivan television documentary and attending the British Masters at Alexandra Palace, he began weekly two-hour snooker lessons with Sean O’Sullivan (no relation) at St Pancras, near Earl’s house.

His best break so far? “He’s 42. If I’m over 50, I’ll treat myself.” What will it be? “A better signal.”

You are convinced that half a century is not far away. In rugby, Earl had to fight his way through. Initially unable to marry his talent with the right bid at Saracens, everything clicked for the 2023 World Cup when he was England’s first-choice number 8 ahead of teammate Billy Vunipola.

Rejoicing on the biggest stage, he found critics clambering over his thrilling celebration of seemingly innocuous moments.

“What we try to do as an England team, when we defend or when we kick, we want the ball to come back as quickly as possible so we can give Marcus (Smith), Manny ( Feyi-Waboso), George Furbank the chance to run and express himself.

“So any way we get the ball back, it’s great. It doesn’t have to be a game-winning turnover or an interception. The slightest forward, the smallest alignment not straight, which was jovial, is huge for us as a team.

So it was never a frivolous thing? “Sometimes it is,” he said with another wink. “But it’s part of me.”

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At 6ft 1in, Earl is not as tall as many Test No 8s – and he is usually an open flanker for his club – but he is quicker around the field than most, and so competent as a player support and carrier that he can cover as a center.

“There is little or no difference between seven and eight hours,” he says. “Some nuance around scrums and set pieces, but I grew up playing eights when I was young, so I’m not too unfamiliar with it. And the people you play with make it easier.

“At the club, Tom Willis does the most incredible and hardest job. And then to come here and play with Tom Curry, Sam Underhill, Ollie Chessum, Chandler Cunningham-South – all very different players, but with their own skill sets, it means you can just be yourself. I will wear the number the team needs.

To the point of being a hybrid center? And should we just get rid of the numbers one through 15? “You have to have some sort of order in this game!” » said Earl. “Maybe the coverage center allows a different selection policy, which is totally fine, but above my pay grade.”

Earl knows where his priorities are, and also that he’s still learning, still finding that balance amid the shifting sands of the sport.

He has a “burning desire” to help England succeed, and we’re halfway through a question about goals for the autumn when he says: “Four wins out of four. You can’t be at Twickenham, at the Allianz Stadium, and expect to lose, can you? We must be really hard to beat there. This is something very important to us, something we are proud of.

Yet, returning to that personal pregame prayer, Earl describes it this way: “Remembering that it’s not the be-all and end-all. Just enjoy being out there, helping your teammates and trying to win.