Ex-France star’s brutal verdict on English rugby which is ‘worse than I thought’ with ‘spanking after spanking’
England head coach Steve Borthwick and former France hooker Benjamin Kayser.
Former France hooker and respected pundit Benjamin Kayser has been left shocked by the state of English rugby as questions continue to be asked following the national team’s poor run of form.
While the ex-Leicester Tigers forward was a bit more positive over the progression of the England side itself, he feels the clubs’ performances in Europe are a real concern.
Although five sides have qualified for the last-16 of the Investec Champions Cup this season, there have also been some embarrassing results.
That includes Leicester’s 80-12 thumping at the hands of Toulouse in the pool stages in January.
‘Scaring the life out of me’
“What I would be more worried about if I was an England fan is the Champions Cup results, that’s the one that’s scaring the life out of me,” Kayser told The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast.
“Leicester Tigers conceding 80 points against Toulouse. We’re not talking about losing by five points.
“Saracens losing at home to Castres, who rotated their squad. That’s what is really worrying me. If you’ve got the right platform, you’re putting all the ingredients together, it’s going to come at some point, some way, somehow, especially with the talent that’s there.
“But given that lack of platform behind, given that lack of solidity behind, I would be more scared about the rest.”
Kayser’s comments came after England opened their Six Nations campaign with a 27-22 defeat to Ireland, their seventh loss in nine matches.
While the 40-year-old has not necessarily been critical of their recent performances and believes that they have shown some progress since the 2023 Rugby World Cup, he claims that the results simply show where Borthwick’s side are at.
“Are England ready to beat teams like Ireland, New Zealand or South Africa? No, that’s just a blunt answer. They haven’t done it, I don’t think they can do it,” he said.
“Are they a bad team? No. Are they going forward? Yes, I believe so.
“Just before the Six Nations, when I saw the Champions Cup results, I thought ‘s***, it’s worse than I thought’. Eighty points is not just a defeat, it’s spanking after spanking.
“Toulouse and Bordeaux have put 50 points on the last English clubs that came over, it’s not just a one-off.”
Decline since 2019
After their appearance in the 2019 World Cup final, England suffered a decline which led to the sacking of Eddie Jones in December 2022.
Borthwick took over with the task of revitalising the national team, but the current head coach finds himself under pressure after a series of frustrating defeats.
“Has England moved ahead since 2019? Absolutely not, they’ve gone backwards. They were trendsetters, they were pacesetters, they were leading the charge,” Kayser added.
“Have they gone forwards since 2022/2023? Yes, I believe so. I find them more intriguing, tough to beat, closer margins.
“I know it’s never going to be enough for you but look at the opposition you had. You could face Romania four times in November and you could get some wins.
“Being in no-man’s land is a horrible moment in international rugby because the margin of difference is so small because you can look like a fool while still being excellent.”
