The term most valuable player is rarely used in sport this side of the Atlantic, and is reserved for such icons of sport such as Tom Brady, Steph Curry and Mike Trout, but England’s rugby team appears to have found its own MVP in Maro Itoje.

The 22-year-old Saracens lock is not yet in double figures in terms of international caps, but he is quickly proving his importance to Eddie Jones’ plans that will culminate at the 2019 Rugby World Cup. He has already proven an welcome asset to the team on the whole, with Itoje yet to lose in an England shirt having begun his international career during the 16-match winning streak that the side are currently on.

But he’s also proven his incredible versatility in many ways. The first came in switching from lock to blindside flanker on the international stage – not an easy feat to do as seamlessly as he did against France in the Six Nations opener last weekend – while covering the second-row should either Joe Launchbury and Courtney Lawes need replacing.

The second has been the understanding that he can strike up with multiple partners in the pack. Itoje flourished early on alongside Saracens clubmate George Kruis, though that’s to be expected given their form in the Premiership and European Champions Cup. Bit on Saturday night against Wales, he proved he can also adapt the take up a third of the back-row alongside openside Jack Clifford and No 8 Nathan Hughes, despite the trio never playing together in the back-row.

The third, though, was the most remarkable. Despite playing in the No 6 shirt, Itoje packed down in the second row with Lawes shifting over to the blindside, and Jones lauded the pair as his new five-and-a-halves in a nod to his heralding of Chris Robshaw’s new role last year.

Itoje’s strong aspects are prevalent both in the lineout – where his height and reach certainly gives him an advantage – and in defence where he is rarely shaken off by the opposition. However, it’s this new role that is revealing his worth as a scrummager, something that Jones identified only last week when he took the decision to make the switch in the pack for the trip to Cardiff.

“One of Maro’s great attributes is his scrummaging,” Jones enthused after the 21-16 victory. “He's a strong scrummager so he scrummed at lock and played at six. If we could have numbers we wouldn't have those. We’d have four and a half and five and a half.

“He's doing really well, I’m so pleased with him. That’s his second Test as a starting number 6 and playing against Warburton who's played 70 Tests.

“He’s a better scrummager and I thought we're silly not using his scrummaging as scrummaging was going to be important and we won the scrums so it was a significant factor in the game. You want your best people scrummaging and there's a massive difference in people's ability to scrum.”

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Look at Brady or Curry and you will see the take-it-in-their-stride attitude, the image of a consummate professional able to overcome any obstacle in their way. That was none so clear than in Superbowl LI little over a week ago, where Brady’s New England Patriots rallied from 25 points down to triumph 34-28 in overtime.

Itoje has that element to his game, too. “The two roles I have played numerous times for my club and here, I want to benefit the team as best I can. Whichever way the coaches feel I can do that, I will do,” Itoje says confidently.

“I’ve played second row and I’ve played No 6 – I feel pretty comfortable at both. The coaches make the decisions they do and I just follow. Having those two quality players, Courtney and Joe, at the side of me helps so they have the choice of which combination they want to use.

Six Nations team of the weekend - round two Show all 15 1 /15 Six Nations team of the weekend - round two Six Nations team of the weekend - round two stuart-hogg3.jpg Bagged his third try of the tournament as his footwork left Baptiste Serin of France on his heels. Could have done better to prevent Gael Fickou’s score, but his attacking flair still ensured he was the standout 15 this weekend. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two elliot-daly1.jpg His match-winning try will go down in English folklore, but it was his determination to chase Dan Biggar and beat him to the loose ball after his interception that saved England in Cardiff. Has jettisoned into Lions contention over the last two weeks. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two garry-ringrose1.jpg If he eased himself in last weekend Ringrose dazzled against Italy as he beat five men and made more metres than anyone else in Rome rout. Bagged a try of his own for good measure. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two gael-fickou1.jpg A constant thorn in the Scottish defences’ side as he combined power and precision to burst open gaps in the line. Took his try very well, reaching out to score that immediately capped the Scots’ momentum. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two liam-williams1.jpg Just ousts Simon Zebo thanks to his illusive running against solid defender Jack Nowell and beautiful line the cut through the England defence and score on the stroke of half-time. Had another chance when he combined with Jonathan Davies, and unlucky to be on the losing side come the full-time whistle. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two dan-biggar1.jpg About as good a defensive display as you will see from a full-back. Made an exceptional 14 tackles as Nathan Hughes tried to ram the ball down his throat, and his interception on his own line saved Wales from conceding and gained them 80m in the process. Unlucky not to bag himself a try, as the combination of Nowell, Daly and a forward pass robbed him of three chances to score. Getty Six Nations team of the weekend - round two rhys-webb.jpg Unlucky not to score when his lunge for the line saw him ground the ball short, but he opened the space for Liam Williams to touch down with a smart line at the English defence. Could find himself in trouble for what looked to be a deliberate knee to Maro Itoje though. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two cian-healy.jpg A very good showing from the loosehead as he got the better of Sinckler in the scrum and it was fitting that he departed in the 51st minute by winning a penalty at the set-piece. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two niall-scannell.jpg In at the last minute following Rory Best’s unavailability through illness, Scannell coped exceptionally well and helped run a 100 per cent lineout in Rome. Chipped in with seven carries for a 21m gain too to allow the back-row and back line to take the glory. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two dan-cole.jpg Came up trumps for England when it mattered most as Wales chose to scrum a penalty that resulted in Cole turning in Rob Evans and relieving the pressure, proving the old dog still has some bite left in him. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two joe-launchbury.jpg A brilliant display of determination with the ball and grit without it as he led the way with the most tackles a well as the second-most carries, and combined with Itoje to drive home England’s advantage in the scrum. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two courtney-lawes.jpg One of his finest performances in an England shirt that proves he’s another benefitting from the Eddie Jones effect. One bone-shuddering hit on Biggar set the tone for England’s defensive display, and also contributed with an impressive 20 tackles. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two cj-stander.jpg Three tries will always go a long way to getting you in the team of the week for any flanker, but that only tells half of the story. The Munster man was unstoppable, making 73m and beating 11 defenders and helped put Italy out of the game before half time. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two kevin-gourdon.jpg The standout French forward as they imposed themselves on the Scottish pack, both in the scrum and the loose. Scotland had no answer when it came to scrum time, but it was Gourdon’s running with the ball in hand that really stood out and he also put in some monster hits defensively as the opposition crumbled. Six Nations team of the weekend - round two nathan-hughes.jpg Beats Jamie Heaslip to the shirt by the slimmest of margins, but it was his ability to break the gain line that wins him the shirt. Smashed his way through the line with 22 carries and his 75 metres contributed enormously, none more so than the smart break from the base of a ruck that led to three points.

“If you asked me two and a half years ago I probably would have said I’m not really a scrummager but I want to try to be the most complete player I can and that involves scrummaging and work around the field. I’m just trying to be the most complete player I can.”

That complete player could prove crucial not only to Jones and his plan to conquer New Zealand on the way to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, but way beyond that. Itoje will be 24 years old when the tournament begins in Japan, and still well below 30 by the time the 2023 Rugby World Cup comes around in either South Africa, Ireland or France.

Itoje is proving his worth on the international stage after just nine caps for England (Getty)