2 weeks Ago By [email protected] (Samuel Meade)
Following in the footsteps of a brother who claimed 54 caps for England, won a Six Nations Grand Slam and went on a British & Irish Lions tour is a tall order. For Will Joseph, the 22-year-old who is 11 years the junior of brother Jonathan, the similarities are uncanny. Both came through the system at London Irish, both wear the number 13 shirt and both with an eye for a gap as they carry the rugby ball in one hand, making it seem more like a tennis ball.
Jonathan went on to play for Bath, with his form making him an England regular. Will's path was less choreographed, more pushed upon him. The demise of London Irish left him looking for a club and just down the road he found a new home in Harlequins.
With an England cap to his name and a club philosophy that lends itself perfectly to Joseph's skillset the world seems to be his oyster. He's had to deal with comparisons to his elder brother from day one, even going back to his days on the school rugby pitch. Both players were products of Millfield, the Somerset-based school that has provided numerous elite athletes.
Coming up against opposition teams with a target on his back - the idea that he wouldn't be as good as his brother was used as a way of getting into his head. Now though, several years a professional and with more England recognition seemingly a case of when not if, Joseph knows that he does belong having forged his own path. He told Mirror Sport : "I had coaches that would push me and they knew that happened with my brother.
I felt that at school and I found that quite frustrating, it put additional pressure on me and you could hear whispers of 'Oh he's not as good as his brother' and I have used that as motivation. "We'd play other teams and you'd hear it but now I see it as a motivator. When I was at school it made me doubt myself a bit, thinking I wouldn't be as good as him, but once I got to Irish I was like 'no I am good enough'.
" His brother has now left the English rugby scene and taken on a new challenge in France. The two Josephs are at different ends of their career and whilst Jonathan's listening ear is always there, Will is relishing the challenge of figuring out the challenges that come his way. "I remember being really young, going to watch him play and that's what I wanted to do," he said.
"He (Jonathan) very much wants me to figure things out - he's always there if I need anything - but he wants me to try and do it on my own. Watching him grow up I looked at him and thought why can't I do that?" The frustration for the junior Joseph was an injury-hit debut campaign at the Stoop. He struggled to string together a consistent run of games with that lack of rhythm an obvious frustration.
Couple that with the competition that existed at Quins as the likes of Oscar Beard and André Esterhuizen also eyed roles in the centre. The latter has since return home to South Africa with his sizeable boots needing filling. Joseph showed what he could do in moments, scoring a try in the Friday night rout of Sale in south west London back in December - which was perhaps a season-best showing in the Premiership.
Quins will begin their season this weekend with a trip to Sale. Joseph has cited that as a personal high - alongside the European win that came a week later - before injury halted his momentum. He said: "I'd say that (Sale) game and the Racing 92 game (were the best performances) - the Racing game is where my foot got bad and things began going downhill.
Obviously we've got Sale again first game of the season and we've reflected on that game." A new year brings new opportunities for the 22-year-old with Quins themselves determined to make amends for a poor end to last season which cost them a spot in the play-offs. A young squad is continuing to blossom at the Stoop with Joseph's former London Irish team-mate Chandler Cunningham-South also finding a new home at Quins.
The back-rower's performances have made him a part of the England set-up and Joseph is determined to follow suit. His one and only England cap came in Australia under Eddie Jones in 2022, but the centre knows that consistent performances for Quins will put him back in contention if he wants to get picked by Steve Borthwick. Joseph has seen how those who currently occupy the English centre berths operate and has set himself a simply - but hopefully effective - goal for this season.
He said: "I think for me it is playing consistently, at a high level, so the likes of Slade and Lawrence they're playing every week and at such a good level. So that is something I want to achieve this year.".
