The new-season 'promise' Freddie Burns has made to Steve Borthwick
Steve Borthwick was in his element on Thursday, returning to Twickenham 75 days after his significant transformation of fallen giants Leicester came down to one final kick from Freddie Burns. England Rugby HQ was lit up by that epic late June 18 drama, the sight of the replacement out-half shunting over the lead-taking drop goal with seconds remaining and then exploding even more jubilantly when the final whistle signalled that Saracens were beaten and Tigers were Gallagher Premiership champions.
Ten-and-a-half weeks later, Twickenham was a heck of a lot quieter when Leicester boss Borthwick returned to the scene of his greatest triumph as a head coach. Quieter, too, he hoped was his match-winner Burns who has understandably milked the limelight in the wake of his result-defining intervention.
Asked to reflect on last season’s return to glory by Leicester, the tongue-in-cheek Borthwick quipped: “Freddie has promised me that he isn’t going to do any more podcasts or tweets and Instagram.”
In all seriousness, though, winning meant so much to the club. “We had a group of young men that came together and faced adversity on and off the field last season and learned a lot and taking those lessons forward is going to be really important.
“For many of the guys competing against the top teams in the league was the first time for some of them, for some it was the first time in a very long time to compete with the top teams in the league. This is such a tough competition but the players are energised by that. They want to compete with teams, they want to get better and coaching them is really exciting.”
Borthwick was speaking at the official launch of the 2022/23 Premiership, sharing the stage with his Harlequins and Newcastle counterparts. All three were asked what excites them most about the new campaign ahead and each gave their take on why they feel the league in England is the world’s best.
The Leicester coach was first to answer. “What excites me the most is across the league we have got some fantastic young players and we saw that with them representing their countries in the summer and we have got some top-class players coming into the league so I am looking forward to seeing that mix of young talent mixed with some global superstars on the field competing against each other. Anybody would be excited by that.”
Next was Quins boss Tabai Matson. “That [what Borthwick said] was my answer,” he began. “There are some exciting young guys coming through, but the derbies is something I really enjoyed coming in last year. They were beautiful to watch.
“They lifted the game to another level and that is what the fans want to see so I am looking forward to seeing some really good derbies this year as well. The rivalries often make players excel, they try and take the game to another level and long may that continue with the league being competitive and brutal.”
Last but not least was Dave Walder, the new boss at the Falcons. “I really enjoy watching the way different styles come up against each other and the different ways to win games of rugby.
"From a coaching point of view, it is really interesting to put yourself in opposition coaches’ shoes and think do you change what you do or do you carry on down certain paths? I just love watching the contrasting styles and how it produces the spectacle is brilliant.”
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It might be legal but he’s sailing pretty close to the wind. Not a lot needs to go wrong for Finau to end up in the bin. Was it late? Not quite, but borderline. High? A couple of CM within the laws, no room for error with that one. Did he wrap the arms? There was a token effort to wrap one arm, the intent was clearly to hit with the shoulder. So yeah, it’s legal, just. But as we all know, a very slight change in the dynamics could easily have him seeing red. Hopefully not when it really matters.
Go to commentsYou forget this is Rassie Erasmus who is still holding the Springbok keys. Even with Felix Jones orchestrating a really tight RWC SF last year. It still wasn't enough to get England past their particular Springbok Monkey in world cups. The reason is FJ was going off of what they did in 2019 not necessarily adapting to current Springboks. So yes, Australia can get passed England because let's be honest, England have a one track strategy, Springboks do not. Even with rush defense I wouldn't be surprised if Rassie continually tweaks it. Also bear in mind Rassie is happy to sacrifice a few mid year and inter World Cup matches to pin point how opposition plays and how to again tweak strategies to get his Springboks in peak performance for the next World Cup. As much as most teams like to win games in front of them and try to win everything, Rassie always makes sure to learn and train for the greatest showdown International Rugby has to offer. Tbh, most people remember World Cup wins and ignore intermediate losses as a result but will remember also WC losses, Ireland, even if they won games in the interim. So even if games are won against the Springboks, it's likely Rassie is just getting a feel for how opposition is moving and adapt accordingly…in time. For Rassie, a loss is never a loss because he uses it as a chance to learn and improve. Sometimes during a game, again like the England match in last year's Semi Final.
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