Along with future England totems Jack Nowell, Anthony Watson and Henry Slade, Hobbs-Awoyemi was tipped for great things after helping the U20s topple perennial champions New Zealand and then Wales to become Junior World Cup winners for the first time.
A year later, HobbsAwoyemi helped England repeat that success alongside a fledgling Maro Itoje, but that cut no ice with his then-club Northampton where he failed to see Premiership action and had to settle for loan spells at lower league Coventry and Moseley.
His move to London Irish in 2016 coincided with their first season in the Championship. Then, with Irish having fought their way back up, an Achilles injury wrecked his 2017/18 campaign, leaving his hopes of becoming an established top-flight player in the balance.
This story is from the December 29, 2019 edition of The Rugby Paper.
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This story is from the December 29, 2019 edition of The Rugby Paper.
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