We need to talk about Steve…

I don’t live next door to Steve Borthwick, our wives don’t play tennis together, and we don’t exchange Christmas cards. I have no debt to him, we do not belong to the same Masonic Lodge, I do not share his enthusiasm for Preston North End, and I have not risked an impractical amount of my tattered pension on him leading England to a joyous and magnificent triumph in the 2027 Rugby World Cup. In case it’s not clear.However, it seems like someone ought to stand up for the guy—or, perhaps more properly, attempt to counterbalance the spleenetic, ignorant drivel that has been erupting around the England Head Coach like a burst sewer over the past week. Yes, his team showed up at Murrayfield and behaved like they were on a blind date, but at least can we talk about the reasons in a reasonable manner?

Take your pick, of course, unless you’re more into the instinctive, beer-stained, hold-my-brain-while-I-type-this perspicacity of social media. – Borthwick is a moron; he should step down immediately because he is unfit, lost in the weeds, lacking in charisma, a clear strategy, or any other hint. He is also overly focused on data and lacks enthusiasm. Blissful ignorance is not for naught.

Maybe we should begin by fact-checking a little bit of this nonsense. The man is not a short plank; he holds a BSc and an MSc, which he earned in his free time. Only Richard Wigglesworth has played in the Premier League more times as a player. Additionally, Borthwick has 57 England caps, 21 of which were as captain. Therefore, it is safe to assume that he is aware of the rules of rugby and understands what happens when you listen to the national anthem while wearing boots.

He coached Saracens, Japan during their World Cup victory over South Africa in 2015, England under Eddie Jones for five years (three Six Nations wins, one Slam), and the Lions in 2017. In his first season as head coach of a lacklustre Leicester team at the time, he advanced to the European Challenge Cup Final and won the Premiership in his second. Thus, once more, we can presume that he has a general notion of which portion of the whistle goes into his mouth.
Do you need references? Keep your grip tight. Nobody’s idea of a mutton chop, Mark McCall, stated the following about him: “Steve manages people well, he understands different personality types.” He has an exceptional rugby brain and a knack for inspiring others. “He’s probably one of the most impressive human beings I know,” Matt Stevens agreed. Although he lacks emotional intelligence, he is an emotionally intelligent man.

During the 2017 Lions Tour, Sam Warburton, the team captain, called Steve Borthwick “a phenomenal coach,” while Rory Best said he “couldn’t speak highly enough.” Having spent the previous year’s Six Nations with him, Nick Evans called him “brilliant.”

Eddie Jones remembered him showing up at the Japan job interview with a legal pad full of bullet points. Eddie later remarked, “And I thought I was supposed to be the one asking the questions.” Years after Borthwick moved from England to Leicester, Chris Robshaw called him “one of the best hands-on coaches I’ve ever worked with,” while Jones remarked, “The players love him.” He has an amazing attention to detail and a strong work ethic.

During the 2017 Lions Tour, Sam Warburton, the team captain, called Steve Borthwick “a phenomenal coach,” while Rory Best said he “couldn’t speak highly enough.” After spending the previous year’s Six Nations with him, Nick Evans called him “brilliant.” Steve taught me a lot about how to view and think about games, even though our perspectives aren’t exactly the same. His text messaging is amazing.

Well, I think how much you value Mark, Matt, Eddie, Chris, Rory, Sam, and Nick will determine how much weight these character witnesses carry, but overall, it seems like a half-decent hallelujah. Stated differently, attempt to locate a person who has trained Borthwick who believes he is “a chump, out of his depth, mired in the weeds,” etc. Not that there are many of them on the ground.

Without a doubt, the man has a fierce/borderline odd attention to detail and work ethic; remove as necessary. He is renowned for having learned Afrikaans as a player in order to decipher South African line-out calls. It was a running joke at Bath that, in order to ensure he consumed the appropriate amount of calories for breakfast, he would count the Rice Krispies in his bowl. It is true that the screaming you occasionally hear at the England Hotel at two in the morning is purportedly the pleading of Borthwick’s laptop batteries seeking forgiveness. He doesn’t avoid the difficult tasks.His demeanour at bedtime has completely changed from his playing days. Dylan Hartley recently remarked that interviewing him back then was like pulling blood from a stone because “he could be dour and uncommunicative,” but as a coach, his style seems more all-encompassing.

Furthermore, it’s obvious that his bedside manner has changed since his playing days. Dylan Hartley recently remarked that interviewing him back then was like pulling blood from a stone because “he could be dour and uncommunicative,” but as a coach, his style seems more all-encompassing. He’s made it apparent that having two young sons and being kicked off the England squad during your honeymoon do not automatically translate into (a) a greater understanding of the value of smelling the flowers or (b) a sharper perspective on how to treat people with respect.

His rise to the top job in England was widely referred to as “a hospital pass.” He also experienced the World Cup that most of us remember, which included a ridiculously easy draw, an incredibly bad gameplan, and a semifinal loss to South Africa in which England led by nine points with twelve minutes remaining and lost by the same margin that the Springboks eliminated France and New Zealand. Not exactly a show-stopper, but third place through the tightest of pool matches suggested sufficient foundation.

Which leads us to the Six Nations and Borthwick 2.0. The offensive game of England needs serious improvement because it was mostly focused on baskets for the previous two years. Except that Felix Jones, a drillmaster of the World Cup-winning Blitz-Bok defence, was scheduled to take over as defensive coach. Given his experience and rugby intellectual property, this was a shrewd move on the part of Sinfield, who wanted out. Therefore, giving Jones the ramparts made logical; in fact, the situation practically demanded it.

The clear issue is that England’s offensive and defensive schemes would need to be rebuilt concurrently in the short future, necessitating changes to the kicking game, transition play, and, to some extent, the set-piece. It is not a formula for immediate understanding. As a result, they stumbled past Italy and struggled past Wales before disastrously faltering against Scotland in a game that cruelly revealed the squad’ lack of unity. Which is, naturally, where we are at the moment.

For the sake of contrast, England isn’t precisely playing The Full Faldo here, but there are some parallels. When Sir Nicholas, a four-time Ryder Cupper and recipient of the European Order of Merit, determined in 1985 that his swing wasn’t pressure-proof enough, he travelled to Florida with David Leadbetter, who wasn’t as well-known at the time, and they crushed five tonnes of practice balls. Six months later, Leadbetter allegedly remarked, “That’s right.” That settles the downturn. After we begin the follow-through, we’ll discuss how to make it all work together.In order to achieve results, or at the absolute least, credible performances, Borthwick must restructure his team and rotate the starting lineup as the more experienced players make way for the fresher players.

It took two years total, during which Faldo achieved no success. Sponsors abandoned him as he was pounding boulders until his hands bled, missing cuts in Milwaukee or finishing last at Valderrama. After winning The Open at Muirfield in 1987, he went on to win four more Majors over the next five years, for a total of six. That’s what England is attempting to achieve at the moment, sort of.

With the exception that the background of Borthwick’s root and branch redesign is obviously very different. Faldo tied for 62nd at the John Deere Classic, but he didn’t have 82,000 spectators paying – what – £100 a pop to watch him whack five-irons into a pond. Moreover, the England Head Coach doesn’t have two years to establish new, championship-winning habits. Rather, Borthwick must restructure his team in order to continue achieving successes or at least credible performances. In addition, he must rotate his players so that the newcomers replace the veterans on the team sheet. And as we can see, it’s neither simple nor linear.

Was Borthwick really going to have to take Revolutionary Road? In the long run, he obviously felt he did, and since he made the decision, you have to presume he evaluated the risks. It’s interesting, for sure, that a man who his detractors harshly denounce as “risk averse” has chosen to take such a potentially dangerous turn. There were less dangerous adjustments and alterations he could undertake.

How much time does he have left, and how many cuts can he make before he gets things right, is the important question. He has a massive five-year deal in his back pocket, which is in his favour and indicates Twickenham is considering the long run. In addition, he is Bill Sweeney’s boy, so he has some extra security there—that is, if the RFU Council doesn’t lynch the CEO. However, it’s important to keep in mind what Sweeney stated in 2022 when he ultimately fired Eddie Jones. “The choice was based solely on how well I performed on the playing field,” he stated. “Having said that, we value our fans greatly, and you don’t want to hear jeers at Twickenham.”
And Steve Borthwick is in risk because of it. He can probably afford to lose a few games—it’s notable that Sweeney spoke about “performance” rather than results—but he is unable to lose at Twickenham. The fact that he is currently forcing the rugby community to accept the same promises of jam and Jerusalem that they were forced to accept during The Decline and Fall of Eddie Jones presents him with an almost insurmountable dilemma. And at the moment, picturing England in the bright uplands is a significant leap of faith, all the more so in light of the country’s string of Six Nations defeats, dull World Cup, and, most recently, Murrayfield’s sorrow. Already, patience is wearing thin.

Therefore, it will take some serious salesmanship, not the least of which is realising that closing your doors to the media or providing “cut and paste” soundbites won’t improve your relationship with customers. Undoubtedly, the World Cup mantra of “I don’t care what people think of us” isn’t going to win over many fans in the South Stand just yet, but Borthwick seems to have realised this as evidenced by his frank remarks following the Scotland match: “I share the feelings of all the supporters – that was not good enough.” Furthermore, it wasn’t.

Choosing Jamie George to be his captain is another of his more kind actions. It’s a pleasant coincidence, but no one is even remotely implying that George is just a PR decision. The new captain, who is incredibly well-liked, well-respected, and incredibly engaging, presents the team with a new, honest public face that both the players and the supporters can happily embrace. His assistance will be essential in ironing out the kinks both on and off the pitch.

You won’t know what’s really going on unless you’re in the dressing room or, at the very least, if you’re just pressing a glass tumbler and an ear against the door. The rest of us are limited to making judgements based solely on what we can see on the grass.

But none of this will remove too many more Murrayfields; fans of England are able to distinguish between chicken salad and chicken excrement, especially if they’re shelling out £100 for it. Borthwick must also deal with the frustrations of his own players, who after their lacklustre performance in Edinburgh would have been much more dejected than the fans; it’s necessary to keep the wobbling plates spinning in either direction. Nevertheless, nothing about this is really special. All head coaches spin plates, weighing the whos and hows among other things. That explains why they wind up losing their hair and making more money.

Is he the proper man, then? Did he take on more than he can handle? Is his team with him? Is the strategy too rigid? Will everything work out well? I have no idea at all. However, rationally speaking, he appears to have the qualifications and a plan; he’s also gone all in with the full-on reboot, and as a renowned coach once said, you don’t come third in a World Cup unless your players are on board. But practically speaking? With all due respect to pratfalls aside, you would think he has until the Six Nations the next year to get everything in order.

In the end, though, you won’t know what’s really going on until you’re in the dressing room or, at the very least, if you’re just pressing a glass tumbler and an ear against the door. All the rest of us can do from the outside is judge based on what we see on the grass, so Steve Borthwick’s staff needs to show Twickenham something concrete as quickly as possible for both himself and England’s benefit. A good place to start would be this weekend versus Ireland.

FOR MORE NEWS CLICK HERE