Jake Morris made his Premiership debut for Gloucester Rugby in the Cherry and Whites’ 20-14 loss to Leicester Tigers at Kingsholm on Saturday.
Simon Morris, Jake’s dad, is a Shed legend having played for Gloucester 104 times in the 1990s and now his son is following in his footsteps 20 years on.
Morris wasn’t set to play until getting a call late in the week after Kyle Moyle failed a fitness test, meaning the 20-year-old was drafted in to make his first Premiership start for his childhood club.
“I had the call on Friday during the team run,” Morris said. “For me, not even being involved in the 23, to going into the 11 shirt, it was an exciting evening for me and my family. A very proud day.
“It’s one thing being in the team, you want to get the win so with the way it went it’s quite tough to take that but I’m still very proud of what I’ve done.”
Like a hot 🔪 through 🧈.
— Gloucester Rugby (@gloucesterrugby) March 15, 2021
Wonderful line from @edslater to get over the whitewash!
Highlights 👇
Scoring tries for fun in the Under-18 academy league ensured England caps at U18 level and the winger has also made a handful of appearances in the Premiership Cup for Gloucester Rugby which has helped him with the step up to this level.
“It’s physical,” he said. “It’s so physical. It’s hard to explain. The pace goes up again even more and your body takes a bruising that’s for sure!”
Disappointing result yesterday, but proud to be able to make my starting debut in the prem 🍒⚪️ pic.twitter.com/FBdBFRpPm9
— Jake Morris (@JakexMorris) March 14, 2021
Gloucester are blessed with back three players and Morris is learning from training alongside some of the world’s best.
“You can look at it two ways,” he said. “For me, it’s just about growing as a player and understanding that now may not be my time.
“In general, I’m very lucky to be around the people I am at training. We’ve got three or four international wingers alone so I’m not short on advice! There’s Matt Banahan who’s been in the game before I even started playing!
“He’s a great mentor for me. I’ll go back and sit down with him and go through the game and ask for his advice and opinions.”
