England star names ‘best club coach ever’ and reflects on change of international captaincy
Jamie George names the 'right person' to lead England as he reflects on captaincy change
In an interview with Ben Youngs and Dan Cole, Jamie George has labelled his time as England captain as one of the “greatest privileges” of his life.
Appearing on the For The Love Of Rugby podcast, George told the panel: “I absolutely loved being able to do it, and do it my way and throw everything of myself into it.”
Maro Itoje replaced George as the key man ahead of the 2025 Six Nations, but the Saracens hooker bears no bad blood towards his long-time teammate.
“I’m there to support Maro in every way that I possibly can,” he explained. “Mine and Maro’s relationship is unbelievable. I’ve known for a long time now, and he’s the right person for us going forward, 100%.”
An England super support system
It’s not easy to step down from a place of power to then support the man who’s taken your place, but George had no problem backing up his friend.
“It’s like, okay, how can I support him? What are my strengths? What are Maro’s strengths? Where can I fill a gap? What needs doing tactically?
“George Ford, and I, and Fin Smith, now especially, try and take a lot of the tactical stuff away from Maro, because he’s got so much other stuff going on.
“So we’re in behind the scenes, going to Lee Blackett, going to Wiggy [Richard Wigglesworth], going to Byron McGuigan, ‘Right, what do you need? What are you seeing? How do you think about this? Have we thought about that? Can we put this in place? Can we put that in place?’
During his career, the 35-year-old has enjoyed playing with some of the greatest minds in the game, and very few come more diligent than Sale Sharks’ George Ford.
“George Ford is unbelievable at what he does. The way that he prepares a team, whether he plays or not, is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. So, me and him have got an unbelievable relationship.
“We think a lot about the game, and then we all almost try and get the nitty gritty done, present it to Maro, and we as a three will then present it to the coaches.”
Itoje has come a long way from his early days in the England squad. Now captain of the squad, captain of Saracens, and captain of the 2025 British and Irish Lions – it’s been quite the journey.
“Maro is unbelievable at delegating and giving people time,” George expressed, praising his leadership style. “‘This is your responsibility, that’s yours’, and we’ve worked that out quite nicely now.”
Mark McCall – “The best club coach ever”
Also reflecting on his long-time coach, Mark McCall, who will be stepping down as Saracens director of rugby at the end of the season, George claimed that they “wouldn’t have won anything” if the Northern Irish coach hadn’t been at the helm.
“Genuinely, he’s been the heartbeat, he’s been the brains, he’s driven absolutely everything,” George enthused.
“I couldn’t speak highly enough of him. I think he’s, he should go down as the best club coach ever. Hopefully, he will, and he deserves all the plaudits, because he’s an unbelievable bloke.
“He doesn’t want any of the plaudits; he wants to stay under the radar. He’ll be very happy in retirement. But what a great guy, what a career he’s had, and hopefully we can give him something to smile about.”