English player Theo Dan: Romania wants me, but playing for the England RWC team is my dream

 English player Theo Dan says the Romania RWC coach wants me but I aim to play for England. The 22-year-old hooker recounts his journey through the seven stages of the English Rugby World Cup, from Old Alleynians to Saracens. Rugby World Cup fans can buy England Vs Japan Tickets from our website.  

One of the hooker's first assignments this season was a September friendly matchup against his parent club in the colors of Ampthill, which gives an idea of how quickly English player Theo Dan has made his mark at Saracens.

English player Theo Dan

A favorable breeze might bring a Twickenham final at the Rugby World Cup to cap off an extraordinary year. In any case, English player Theo Dan has advanced quickly. His journey to this point involved a transfer from the middle to the front row, complete with the embarrassing setbacks one could anticipate from such a shift.

The 22-year-old's senior career has already crossed seven divisions of England's club pyramid with the support of his Romania RWC coach.  The 2016 Wellington festival was one of several "sliding doors" moments.

English player Theo Dan was convinced to poke his head into the midst of the scrum while he was playing for the Saracens Under-16s and harboring dreams of being the next Brad Barritt. It was the last thing I wanted to hear, he admits. However, I gradually adapted to the reality that my time in the back was ended.

Dan did not anticipate it being simple, which is fortunate. A second turning moment occurred because his alma mater, Alleyn's School in Dulwich, could not have Rugby World Cup union matches.  Dan, 17, required games after moving away from Blackheath to focus on his GCSEs.

English player Theo Dan: From Saracens to London 2 SW - Overcoming Challenges, Embracing the Scrum

Kelly Brown, who was then one of the Saracens academy coaches, called Old Alleynians and set up a front-row apprenticeship in the seventh level of London 2 South West. It worked well for the way I played since I was rather aggressive and combative, and it was enjoyable," says Dan. "Regardless of whether I had been signed off or not, I was not permitted to scrum against males until I became 18 years old.

I spent the first part of that season playing line-outs and scrummaging in the back row. On Boxing Day, the day I turned 18, I was asked, "Right, do you want to try hooker? I was destroying myself throughout the scrum.

With the subsequent loan to Bishop's Stortford in National One, the learning curve would get steeper. Even for seasoned forwards, hearing the words "Cinderford away" might make them nervous. English player Theo Dan would begin on the third tier, on the outskirts of the Forest of Dean.

It was practically funny, He asserts. Because of the dense fog, it was impossible to see the posts from the 22. I clearly remember finding the warning signs to be a little scary. Cinderford, who is notorious for having a large, vicious pack, was beating me up in the scrum. I struggled with my line-outs while we were moving backward, and after approximately 20 minutes I was hooked off.

Thriving in a Man's World: Dan's Journey of Strength, Skill, and Scrums

At first, all I could think was, "Wow, I'm in a man's world now." I came to the realization that to survive, I would need to gain weight, become stronger, and truly master the complicated mechanics of scrummaging. Dan had made exciting cameos from the sidelines, but he admitted that he was "getting thrown around in the scrum" and that he wasn't feeling well.

He gained weight as a result, increasing progressively from 101kg to around 108kg. Although Dan points out that back-five forwards, who may be forced to increase their weight from 90 kilograms to over 120 kilograms, had it considerably tougher, Kinder Bueno chocolate bars helped the process.

My grandfather had such a profound impact on me.

Dan's parents, Octavian and Diana, met in Brussels after separately emigrating from Romania RWC coach during the fall of the Soviet Union. Both of them had grown up in Targu Jiu and Bucharest, respectively. Ion Dijmarescu, Dan's maternal grandpa, was well-known in Petrosani. Rugby World Cup 2023 fans can buy England Rugby World Cup Tickets from our website.

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 He was an engineering professor who played for and then coached the university team that competed at the top level. Dan's grandma, who was his wife, worked as a touchline physician and specialized in mending broken noses.

Although Dan and his sister Laura were both born in London, they split their summers between Targu Jiu and Bucharest. At home, the Romania RWC coach is still spoken to, and Dijmarescu sent Dan off in a sports sense. Three months before I signed my first professional deal in 2019, my grandfather passed away," recalls Dan. "The Wellington tournament in 2016 would have been the last time he saw me play."

He was a tighthead prop and a very precious guy to me, so he could have smiled a little when he saw me in the front row.  My mother gets constantly forwarded WhatsApp messages from my grandad's pals, who are men in their 80s and mid-70s. They are dispersed over the globe and have been checking in online to tell my mother how proud they are of me.

Some of these men I've only ever met once or twice, yet there is a sense of love surrounding me when I play rugby because my granddad had such a significant impact on everyone, not just in our family.

Romania wants me, but the England RWC squad is the dream

This season, Dan has taken full use of his opportunity after being recalled from Ampthill's Championship campaign, and there will have been a tonne of messages of goodwill. Though he is hesitant to single out a particular moment, it was extremely gratifying to force match-winning scrum penalties against Exeter Chiefs late in the game.

However, a priceless mentor is located close by. The finest set-piece hooker in the world, according to English player Theo Dan, is Jamie George, who is mentored by a team that also includes Tom Woolstencroft, Kapeli Pifeleti, and Ethan Lewis.

Mark McCall could decide to use George and Woolstencroft's expertise in the Premiership play-offs. Dan, an Under-20 international for England, is well aware of the need to broaden his skill set. However, Steve Borthwick values "super-strengths" and is reputed to be curious.

Serious Questions Asked of Romanian player eligibility -

Dan's powerful "bite" in contact, according to Saracens coach Kevin Sorrell, is challenging to instill in players. What about the subsequent rung on a ladder that started at Old Alleynians? Given the impending Premiership playoffs, it seems sense that English player Theo Dan would like to steer clear of World Cup speculation. However, because the Romania RWC coach has also been in touch, a choice about his national team will eventually need to be made.

Before I made a Premiership debut for Sarries, they inquired whether I could play, according to Dan. But I've always wanted to try and establish myself at the Premiership level first since England has been my ambition since I was a young child. Any kind of international decision should be made later, in my opinion. That still holds.

Giant's T-shirt brings Romania a place in the Guinness World Records

On April 22, International Earth Day, the Kaufland Romania Rugby World Cup team and the 11even Association broke the Guinness World Record for "The biggest shirt in the world" with the help of the Romanian Rugby World Cup 2023 Federation.

The Giant T-shirt is entirely composed of textile recycled plastic, produced by capitalizing over 250,000 PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) bottles. The Giant's Jersey was measured by a team of surveying engineers, and a representative of Guinness World Records verified the results based on exacting standards on Saturday at Bucharest's Arcul de Triumf National Rugby Stadium. 

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1500 people watched the event, including members of the national rugby team, media representatives, partners, kids, and teenagers from different sports clubs in Bucharest, as well as other registered attendees. Later, Smiley performed in honor of the occasion.

The Giant T-shirt is around 4 tonnes in weight and roughly the length and width of an RWC pitch at 108.96 meters and 73.48 meters, respectively. Over 150 volunteers, professional transporters, and tailors contributed to its exhibition. The official jersey of the Romanian Rugby World Cup team features a tricolor belt, a reinterpretation of the national flag, on the shirt.

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