41 days after Burgess let rip, George Ford has responded to the stinging allegations
George Ford has refused to hit back at former England teammate Sam Burgess who branded the No10’s father Mike – now an assistant coach at Leicester – a “snake” after the failed 2015 World Cup campaign.
Burgess headed back to rugby league after England failed to make the knockout stages of the tournament five years ago and he waited until last month to claim that Mike Ford, then in charge of Bath where Burgess was playing, had undermined the England challenge in the hope of moving into Stuart Lancaster’s head coach role.
Burgess also branded George as “sulky” after he had been dropped for the key pool Wales game, a selection that resulted in Burgess coming into the starting XV.
Recalling a post-finals meeting he had with coach Ford, Burgess alleged: “Mike, I don’t trust you. I think you have been playing games behind my back. You have used me as a bit of a pawn in your game of chess, I can’t put my boots on and play for you every week.
“I will never forget his face when I said: ‘I can’t respect you, I think you are a bit of a snake.’ I just felt that people behind the scenes were playing a deeper game. With George, Mike kind of infiltrated the camp; that is my take on it. After me starting against Wales, my relationship with George completely changed. He wouldn’t talk to me, he was a bit sulky.”
A sight that will hurt sore Leicester eyes https://t.co/QKpg9mLeXF
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 14, 2020
Despite the damaging nature of these Burgess comments, Ford would not respond when appearing before the media for the first time since the claims. He said on Tuesday 41 days after Burgess had said his piece: “I don’t feel I have to sit here and justify anything really.
“I’m content enough and so are my family – we are a tight family – to not respond. We can’t control what other people think and neither can anyone else control what we do day in day out. I’m not too fussed and not prepared to comment back.”
When asked if he would try to talk to Burgess about the comments he gave a quick “no” and added: “I don’t feel the need to justify any of the comments that came out. I’m content with how I go about my stuff as a professional rugby player. There is no reason to justify it.”
Ford will have to pull the tactical strings for Tigers when the 2019/20 Gallagher Premiership season restarts next month without a host of key players who have left the club due to financial problems.
The No10 eventually sorted out his deal to stay at Welford Road but the talent no longer available to Tigers as they finish out a disappointing season includes Manu Tuilagi (Sale Sharks), Jonny May (Gloucester), Telusa Veainu (Stade Francais), Jonah Holmes (Dragons), Noel Reid (Agen) and the as yet unattached England centre Kyle Eastmond.
With wing Adam Thompstone also released by the Tigers, that constitutes enough players to form a back division. In response, Tigers have signed Scotland international Matt Scott, utility back Zack Henry and Harry Potter from Australia, along with Nemani Nadolo, the Fijian powerhouse wing, to bolster their options.
Tuilagi, Veainu, Eastmond, Reid and Greg Bateman all refused to sign new reduced-pay contracts and were stood down by the Tigers, who stand a forlorn eleventh in the Premiership as they prepare for restart the season away to leaders Exeter Chiefs on August 15.
Ford said: “It’s not just Leicester Tigers going through this, every business in the world is. It was a very difficult situation and everyone is going to make mistakes. As a group of players, we stood our ground a little bit but in the end we had some good dialogue with the club and a situation where it could all get sorted.
Manu's goodbye note 😢 https://t.co/uVquXTXlWj
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 14, 2020
“Manu is a world-class player and a brilliant guy. He is going to be missed. I was in the academy with him and it is about moving on now. I’m sure he will be very good for Sale but we also have some good guys and the club will have to bring some players in.
“We will recruit and try to replace the guys who have left and we won’t be using anything as an excuse. We have to be better. Nemani is the biggest guy I have ever come across and is already contributing to the environment.
“It has been a testing time for everyone and you lose a sense of reality. It has been good to have a bit of a break to spend a lot more time with family and it is a break mentally and physically and I am excited to get back. “
Meanwhile, Taylor Gough, the 20-year-old Tigers back row, has been in intensive care at Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham since being involved in a major road incident in mid-June. Ford admitted the squad are “devastated” about his accident
“He is in hospital and has to be looked after in a particular way. He seems in relatively good spirits and we will give Taylor and his family as much support as possible.”
Our thoughts and prayers are with the youngster following his accident 🙏 https://t.co/cn44yaRSLF
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 14, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
Ben Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
19 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
7 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
7 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
19 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
19 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
7 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to comments