One of the break-out stars of the 2023/24 season with England, Chandler Cunningham-South has taken to some interesting techniques to keep himself calm and collected, in what was a whirlwind of a season for the back row. Yoga has become the remedy for the Harlequin, after he discovered the mental and physical benefits whilst on tour with England this past Summer.
Cunningham-South and the England players took part in some ‘sleep yoga’ sessions, that were in place to rejuvenate them after the long training days out in Japan and New Zealand. For the likes of Cunningham-South, the Summer tour was an exhaustive effort which capped off the 2023/24 Premiership season, with the back row buying in to the yoga sessions, and continuing on with the exercises on his holiday to Bali, albeit without any tie-dye shirts and flower-embossed medallions.
“My body’s feeling pretty good at the moment. I suppose getting in the sun, getting in the ocean is good while you can. But now just trying to make sure I’m doing my recovery, doing my stretching, and I started yoga this year. Certainly trying to do that a lot more, because I did it a bit last year. Trying get a bit more flexible.”
“I think when you wake up in the morning, just feel a bit bit freer and stuff like that. I’ve only done it a few times, but I want to continue it. So it must be doing something, if not the body, then mentally, I guess.”
Cunningham-South explained who amongst the England squad were able to embrace the benefits of sleep yoga, with a certain Exeter Chiefs wing feeling the effects of the stretches after a long day of training. The Harlequin also explained who was leading the sessions, as one of the England back-room staff members channelled her inner guru.
“I think it’s a way to relax and take a step back from it all. I suppose not being around loads of men, I guess is good as well! Manny (Feyi-Waboso) is probably is the most ‘zen’. He ends up sleeping for about half an hour after the session.”
“Ann-Marie (Birmingham, led the sessions), she was one of the sports masseuses. I haven’t actually done it here yet, but I’m starting it at David Lloyd (gym), but I’ve done it when I’ve been away in Bali as well.”
Cunningham-South has experienced numerous highs and lows throughout his early rugby career, with the opportunity to ground himself and enjoy mind-full exercises being too good to pass up. The former London Irishman had the yoga mat pulled out from under his feet when the Exiles went bust at the end of the 2022/23 season, and had to tread the uncharted waters of free agency before being snapped up by Harlequins.
The battering back row would have an immediate impact in the famous quarters, with the momentum of his move across West London earning him a call-up from the bigger stadium across the road from the Twickenham Stoop. Cunningham-South would make his England debut away to Italy, in the 2024 Six Nations opener, and has been a main stay within Steve Borthwick’s squad for the past eight months.
“The step up it from playing at your club to playing at England, is a massive step up.” Cunningham-South added. There’s a lot of detail, the training is harder. There’s a lot of people there to help you though, although it’s a lot to learn and a lot to take in. There’s so many people around you who are trying to help you to get onto the field, especially the players as well. They’re all very supportive of each other.”
This past season saw Cunningham-South involved with Harlequins’ greatest ever run in Europe, as the West Londoners reached the semi-finals of the Champions Cup. Whilst it was certainly an impressive feat to reach the final four, before bowing out to the eventual champions Toulouse, Cunningham-South wants to keep the squad fired up and have a similarly impressive run in club rugby’s pinnacle competition this coming season.
“We want to be a team that’s one of the best in Europe, not just in the Premiership. So we can keep getting ourselves up in that level in Europe. That’d be a good achievement.”
“We have big games, and then how do you go from big games to another big game to another big game? Because I feel like it’s quite hard when you’re going away to Toulouse, and then you have to back it up again when you’re going away to Exeter.
“It’s hard enough already to go all the way to Exeter, but having just lost the (Champions Cup) semi finals is pretty hard. Those last few games in the Premiership at the end of the season, were tough games, and we didn’t do enough to win them, but hopefully we can learn from that, and this year do better.”
As Cunningham South explained, Harlequins had an underwhelming final run of matches towards the end of the last Premiership season. Couple this with the closeness of the 10-team league, and Quins’ dropped down the table for an eventual seventh place finish. The men from the Stoop are planning for a far stronger performance this coming season, with the marker laid down for consistency and longevity throughout both the Champions Cup and the league campaign.
“Hopefully we can make top four (of the Premeirship). That’s what I really want to do this year. I’ve never been in top four, so that’d be that’d be really cool to be able to have that chance to play a semi final, and then hopefully we have another good run in Europe.”
“It’s just backing it up each week, keeping it going and keeping the morale high, even after a tough loss or a big win.”