‘A tall Eddie Jones’ – Steve Borthwick slammed as ‘not a people person’ as former boss takes aim at England head coach
England head coach Steve Borthwick has been criticised by Geordan Murphy.
Steve Borthwick has been labelled a “tall Eddie Jones” as his former boss at Leicester Tigers, Geordan Murphy, launched a stinging attack on the England head coach.
Murphy was director of rugby at the Premiership outfit in July 2020 as Borthwick arrived at the club in a head coach capacity and made his feelings immediately clear.
According to the former Ireland international, Borthwick was “not a people person” and their working relationship didn’t last long as Murphy soon exited the Tigers.
Similar to Eddie
Murphy, speaking in an interview with Prime Casino, said that on his arrival at Leicester Borthwick told him “I don’t want to be your friend” as he started his job.
The Lions tourist also believes Borthwick has similar traits to ex-England boss Jones, who was openly criticised by some former players and staff for his demeanour.
“If [England] do think of getting rid of Steve, then the questions have to be asked, and fingers pointed elsewhere as well because he effectively is a ‘tall Eddie Jones’,” Murphy said.
“That’s what I’m hearing in camp, that his behaviour is very similar to Eddie. So why would you get rid of one bloke and replace him with an English clone?
“There’s a lot of people who’ve been complicit in making that decision, so I think it looks bad for a lot of people. So, no I don’t think you do get rid of him. I don’t think they can get rid of him. I think they’ll stick with him. But that’s good for everyone else!”
There was plenty of turnover of England staff under Jones and it’s been a similar situation so far under Borthwick as both Aled Walters and Felix Jones left in 2024.
Murphy recalled of his short time working with Borthwick that it wasn’t a particularly friendly atmosphere, not helped by the former lock setting out his stall early.
“I never played with Steve. I played against him. I played against him, played England-Ireland, played Leicester-Bath, Leicester-Saracens against him. I worked with him very briefly at Leicester during the pandemic. He can coach; I think he’s a good coach – that’s it,” he continued.
Not friends
“We are certainly not friends. That’s all I know. When I briefly worked with Steve that was something that he made very apparent. He said to me, ‘I don’t want to be your friend’.
“That makes it very difficult when you’re in a working environment and somebody comes to you and says that. He just cares about being a good coach. I only really saw him on the surface so I didn’t really get to know him too well.
“He’s very single-minded, very focused on facts and figures. He’s certainly not a people person. That wouldn’t be something that would ever be said about him.”
Murphy’s view is in contrast to current England back-row Ben Earl, who recently told The Times that he’s enjoying the “stable environment” under coach Borthwick.
“It’s the most stable international environment I’ve ever been part of,” he said. “With Steve you always know what’s coming and that reduces anxiety. There is also consistency in the messaging. Players know what’s expected.”
England are currently preparing to tackle France in Round Two of the Six Nations as they desperately look to bounce back after last week’s defeat to Ireland in Dublin.
