Sir Clive Woodward: The ‘invaluable’ impact of Jamie George after ‘no histrionics’
Sir Clive Woodward has hailed Jamie George for the manner he has dealt with losing the England captaincy.
Sir Clive Woodward has sung the praises of former England captain Jamie George ahead of his 100th Test match for his country.
Head coach Steve Borthwick removed George from the captaincy role ahead of the 2025 Six Nations after the hooker led the side throughout 2024.
The front-rower missed England’s opening game of the Championship against Ireland but returned in fine form with telling impacts off the bench in their victories over France and Scotland.
George is set to notch up his Test ton this weekend against Italy and ahead of the clash, Woodward has hailed the manner in which the hooker has dealt with the disappointment of losing the captaincy.
How the ex-England hooker reacted
He has been particularly impressed by the way he has gone about assisting new skipper Maro Itoje when he has come off the bench in England’s two victories by the narrowest of margins.
“I’d also like to congratulate George on how he has dealt with the situation,” Woodward wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“I’m sure he would have been disappointed to lose the armband because he is a hugely passionate player and incredibly patriotic, but there have been no histrionics from him.
“He hasn’t thrown his toys out of the pram. What he has done instead is play a vitally important leadership role alongside Itoje in the final quarter of games when he has been coming off the bench. I’m sure he’s also been hugely supportive behind the scenes.”
He added: “I don’t think it’s a coincidence at all that England have won their last two matches by the narrowest of margins because in both, Borthwick has had Itoje and George running the show together in the final quarter.
“Both players know each other really well as they are club-mates at Saracens. I think that really helps.”
Woodward was hugely complimentary of Itoje too with the ex-head coach pleased that the England captain now plays a full match, which has not always been the case, pointing to George and former skipper Dylan Hartley.
Itoje has also been able to lean on his fellow leaders in the team which Woodward believes has been crucial for Borthwick team’s success.
“In the last couple of matches, he has also been able to lean on George for the odd word of advice. That’s something all great captains do naturally,” he continued.
“It can be invaluable. You don’t have to take the other person’s opinion but looking to others for their views is a strength, not a weakness. Itoje has proven to be a brilliant captaincy choice.”
Jamie George hurting
Meanwhile, George has opened up on losing the captaincy, admitting that he did ‘hurt’ and took inspiration from other sports in how to deal with the disappointment.
“That hurt, it really did, and the first thing on my mind was ‘is that me [done]?’,” he told reporters ahead of his 100th Test match.
“Some of the best times of my life have been playing rugby for England. I love playing rugby for England.
“When I was reflecting on it, I took a bit of inspiration from Joe Root. I tried to see other sports where it has happened. Has it worked in any other sports? Has it worked in our sport?
“I look at Joe Root now and the freedom he has and the way he has kicked on and become the best batsman in the world arguably.
“That is hugely inspiring and I see that as the sort of trajectory I aspire to be like, the way he has reacted to it I see it as a huge positive.
“It has freed him up and allowed him to play even better than he already was. That is how I would love it to be and I am feeling a bit of that.”
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