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Steve Borthwick confirmed as England head coach by RFU

By PA
Steve Borthwick (PA)

A new era for England has begun with the confirmation of Steve Borthwick as their new head coach, with Kevin Sinfield joining as defence coach.

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The 43-year-old Cumbrian has been officially announced as Eddie Jones’ successor after a deal was finalised on Sunday morning.

Leicester Tigers confirmed that they had agreed terms with Steve Borthwick and Kevin Sinfield for an early release from their contracts with the club.

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Borthwick signs on a 5-year deal that will see him through to the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.

Jones was sacked almost two weeks ago after presiding over England’s worst year of results since 2008, managing only five wins from 12 games.

Borthwick appeared at a press conference at Twickenham on Monday.

“I’m deeply honoured to be appointed England head coach, and I am very excited by the challenge,” Borthwick said. “The English game is full of talent and I want to build a winning team which makes the most of our huge potential and inspires young people to fall in love with rugby union the way I did. I want the whole country to be proud of us and to enjoy watching us play.

“The hard work starts now and planning for the Guinness Six Nations and Rugby World Cup begins today. I will give it everything.”

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RFU CEO, Bill Sweeney added: “We are delighted to be welcoming Steve back to the RFU. He has been part of the England team for over 15 years and he is our first-choice successor to Eddie.

“Steve and Kevin’s insight and first-hand knowledge of the players will be a great asset and everyone at the RFU is right behind them with our full support.”

Sinfield said: “It is a special moment to join England as a coach. I know what representing your country means and to get the chance to do it as a coach is a real honour.

“There is so much player talent in England and I am really looking forward to working with the wider squad of players to see what we can achieve together, especially with such a massive year ahead of us.

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“I’d like to thank everyone at Leicester Tigers, the players, staff and supporters, for welcoming me to the club. I’ve loved my time there and wish them all the best for the rest of the season.

“I’m looking forward to getting started and there’s no better opening campaign than the Guinness Six Nations.”

Warren Gatland, Ronan O’Gara and Scott Robertson were among the names touted to replace Jones, but Borthwick has been the Rugby Football Union’s overwhelming preference to take over.

Before transforming Leicester from a fallen giant of English club rugby into Premiership champions, the former Saracens captain spent eight years as an international assistant coach – all under Jones.

Upon hanging up his boots, he launched his coaching career with Japan in 2012 and then joined his tracksuit mentor when he was appointed England boss in the aftermath of the disastrous 2015 World Cup.

Borthwick’s role was overseeing the forwards, with the line-out his main area of expertise, but he also performed the key role of coaching coordinator and was seen as the glue behind the scenes.

Since his departure, England have struggled for consistency as the churn of backroom staff accelerated in the face of Jones’ demanding managerial style.

When Borthwick took over Leicester were reeling from their 11th-place finish in the 2019-20 season and were only spared relegation by Saracens’ salary cap scandal, which resulted in the London club dropping out of the Premiership instead.

The ship was steadied by finishing sixth a campaign later and despite operating under the salary cap limit, he went on to mastermind Leicester’s first league title since 2013.

Now in charge of England, he must lift another team out of he doldrums – although this time he has the World Cup looming on the horizon.

Only five competitive fixtures in the form of the Six Nations await before the global showpiece in France next autumn, with four warm-up matches providing additional preparation time.

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Trevor 1 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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