It is head-spinning – sometimes savagely so – how rapidly fortunes turn around in professional sport. One minute Jamie George was England captain, the next he is a crocked foot soldier with a question mark over whether he will reach the century of caps his contribution for his country deserves.
George is marooned on 97. The hamstring injury he sustained last weekend means he will not be available for either of England’s first two Six Nations fixtures against Ireland and France. He will be fit for the three remaining games of the championship but will he be picked?
The Autumn Nations Series, and the fallout from it, have changed the lie of the land. The whisper is that George would not have started against Ireland anyway. The form hooker in England right now is Sale’s Luke Cowan-Dickie, who is back near his abrasive best after injury issues. Cowan-Dickie, if you recall, was the starting Test hooker on the last Lions tour.

George would probably have made the bench behind him but actually, when you think about it, Theo Dan, his Saracens understudy, is better suited to that role given the energy he can bring. He is the definition of the impact sub Steve Borthwick is searching for to create waves in England’s last-quarter millpond.
Cowan-Dickie and Dan will be the hooking combination England go with by default against Ireland and France but should that pair dovetail well as hooking granite and glitz over the opening fortnight of the championship and England win those games, it could be a long way back for George.
That is a big if. There is more chance of England being zero from two heading into Calcutta Cup week given the choppy start they have been handed by the fixture setters but it is not impossible they do start well. They weren’t so far off the pace in the autumn. And if that happens the new order starts to cement itself.
It will feel inwardly to George like he has been made the fall guy for the three narrow losses in the autumn. Which he has.
George’s future is suddenly out of his own hands.
The England head coach’s decision to award George an enhanced EPS contract last October indicated he saw him as, if not a long-term, then at least a medium-term bet. But that was when he was captain. His England team is his no longer. It is Maro Itoje’s.
It is a mark of the character George is that he found the strength to go out of his way to make contact with Itoje to congratulate him on taking his job. George’s record as England captain was disappointing – five wins out of 12 – but it was a role he clearly loved doing. Borthwick’s report he was “clearly disappointed” after being told of the decision sounds something of an understatement.
It will feel inwardly to George like he has been made the fall guy for the three narrow losses in the autumn. Which he has.
As a player George may not carry the ball as much as he once did but he is far from a busted flush at top level. As a ball-playing hooker he still offers plenty and his lineout delivery is still as good as ever.

He adds value to England on a human level too. His soft skills make him the perfect arm-around-the-shoulder teammate.
Borthwick had to change something however in an attempt to tinker with the margins and turn those close defeats into victories.
A valid question is where George’s motivation will sit now. Will the fires still burn as strongly back in the ranks?
Perhaps the injury absence will afford him time for the blow to dissipate and allow himself space to reboot. Hopefully, when he is fit again, ‘Jinx’ will return as his usual ebullient self, ready to go again for his country, determined to show there is a little bit more toothpaste to squeeze out of the tube yet.
If you add in his three Lions Test caps from the New Zealand tour in 2017, George is already at 100 but it would be preferable not to have to rely on the smallprint.
There is a Lions tour to aim for in the summer. George has been part of the past two. But even before his badly timed injury this one looked like being touch and go for him. Dan Sheehan, Dewi Lake and AN Other will most probably be Andy Farrell’s hookers.
If George misses out, it is unlikely Borthwick would take him on England’s summer tour to Argentina and the United States. Falling in the shadow of the Lions, that trip is an opportunity to experiment and at George’s stage of rugby life off-seasons should be for rest and recuperation. He turns 35 this year. Time marches on.
The figures either side of George for so long in the England front row have changed to sepia. Joe Marler went in the autumn, of his own volition, Dan Cole has followed ahead of this Six Nations. It must make a man think of his own rugby mortality.
If all this feels like doom scrolling to you, it is done with a heavy heart. George is one of the most universally popular players to have pulled on the white shirt in the professional era. He has a word and a smile for everyone.

Ninety-seven caps – in one of the most punishing positions on the pitch – is a phenomenal tally. George stands alongside Dylan Hartley, the man who kept him out of the starting shirt at the beginning of his Test career, as England’s most-capped hooker.
Joining the hundred club would be better though – only six Englishmen in history have managed it. If you add in his three Lions Test caps from the New Zealand tour in 2017, George is already there but it would be preferable not to have to rely on the smallprint.
Sentiment will play no part for Borthwick but let’s hope there is time left for George – big cricket fan that is – to complete his Test century for England. He has given so much to the cause over the past decade in good times and bad. If anyone deserves to raise his bat to the standing ovation from the stands it is him.
He had his chance but, under his leadership, we have struggled to close out games. He isn't the best captain, isn't the best choice in his position anymore and doesn't have longevity.
It's unfortunate timing re his recent injury, but the fact is George won't be around for the next WC and he isn't the player he was 2 or 3yrs ago, particularly around the pitch.
England need to their strongest scrummaging front row against Ireland, and for me that would be Rodd, Cowan-dickie and Stuart.
Its time to move on.
I think George is a good enough leader to think bigger picture and not take his situation personally - think he’s the fall guy.
If he’s a really good leader, he’ll take this opportunity to respond to this by being the best team player he can be and follower to Itoje. Show others how to respond to setbacks.
He also needs to prove he’s the best no. 2 England’s got. Which is everyone’s first priority before anything else.