Coach ‘the perfect person’ to lead side into World Cup
Springboks game ‘an amazing opportunity’ for players
Jamie George has insisted England can go toe-to-toe with South Africa when they lock horns with the world champions in July and believes his side will be among the favourites for next year’s World Cup if Steve Borthwick remains as head coach.
England are on a disappointing run of four straight defeats but, while Saturday’s 48-46 loss to France condemned them to their worst Six Nations campaign, the manner in which Borthwick’s side performed – scoring seven tries in Paris – has given rise to renewed optimism.
Borthwick remains under scrutiny and he will face the music with the Rugby Football Union conducting a review into the Six Nations, vowing to establish why the wheels fell off for England after they began the championship on the back of 11 straight wins. Last week the RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney took the unprecedented step of offering Borthwick qualified support, promising to “work together to understand and rectify why we have been unable to meet expectations”. It is understood that despite England’s upturn in performance in Paris, the RFU’s position remains the same.
