England stars ‘shocked’ by coaching duo’s exits as they are left puzzled by ‘odd timing’
England trio George Furbank, Tommy Freeman and Fin Smith admit they are in “real shock” after Felix Jones followed Aled Walters out of the door at Twickenham.
It was reported this week that assistant coach Jones, who leads the Red Rose defence, is expected to depart after less than a year in the post in a stunning development.
This follows head of strength and conditioning Walters having exited with immediate effect to join Andy Farrell’s Ireland set-up in what is a concerning double setback.
Double exit
Both coaches were part of the Springboks’ Rugby World Cup wins in 2019 and 2023 and were widely viewed as significant additions to Steve Borthwick’s staff last year.
Jones‘ departure is yet to be confirmed by the Rugby Football Union with a 12-month notice period in his current deal. However, one would think that won’t be enforced.
That means Borthwick is set to be on the hunt for two new members in his backroom team but for the players it seems they’re still coming to terms with the shock news.
“We weren’t expecting it. Nobody really saw it coming. It was a bit of a shock. It was bit of an odd timing,” England and Northampton Saints full-back Furbank revealed.
“They will be a loss. I loved working with Felix especially. He was a very good coach so he’ll definitely be missed. But I’m sure the people Steve will bring in will do a good job.”
Northampton and England team-mate Freeman was in a similar mood following the departures, saying he was “gutted”, while fly-half Smith lamented the pair’s exits.
“Really surprising. Definitely, definitely didn’t see it coming. It’s going to be a real shame with those two guys not being around,” 22-year-old star Smith has admitted.
“Aled’s an amazing character and drives so much of the energy in there and Felix is one of the hardest-working coaches and one of the best rugby brains I’ve come across.
“There’s no two ways about it – they’re going to be a big loss. It’s a real shock.”
Following the departure of Eddie Jones and the coaching upheaval that became a feature of his tenure, it was expected that Borthwick would bring stability in that area.
However, the exits of Walters and Jones have put a spotlight on the new regime, particularly after the pair had yet to reach a combined total of 30 Tests with England.
The Red Rose had seen improvements in their game recently and the narrow losses to the All Blacks featured an impressive defensive effort, which Furbank is proud of.
“It helped us go from a defence that was ranked fourth or fifth in the world to first or second. We definitely saw massive improvement,” he said of the defensive effort.
“It can become an all-or-nothing thing but the majority of the time if you get that right and you train it, it becomes a very difficult defence to attack against.
“We’ve experienced that here at Saints. When you face those blitz defences, it’s hard to be able to move the ball and execute your game plan.
“It’s a defence that took a while to understand, but once you do you feel like such a dominant side.”
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