Brookes: I’m battling to get X-factor

KIERAN Brookes has revealed how a rocket from Eddie Jones over fitness levels is underpinning his bid to win an England recall for this summer’s tour of Argentina.

Northampton tight-head Brookes has been out of the England picture since last appearing against Wales in the 2016 Six Nations, with Red Rose boss Jones favouring Kyle Sinckler and club-mate Paul Hill as back-up to Dan Cole.

However, Jones last week publicly stated that he wants more tight-heads pushing through and Brookes is determined to increase his tally of 16 England caps.

He said: “Eddie’s told me what’s up for grabs, so all I can do is keep working hard and put in consistent performances between now and the end of the season and show him I want to play for England.

“Eddie’s a good manmanager and there’s no beating around the bush; he told me my fitness levels weren’t good enough and I’ve been working hard on that.”

Brookes, 26, explained: “Since Eddie’s come in with England he’s been pushing the fitness levels of everybody and he tells you exactly what he likes in each position and that you’ve got to do as well as you can to reach those standards. “That’s filtered down to club level and while we already have some pretty intense sessions at Northampton, I’ve been trying to do extra power, endurance and bike sessions. “There was quite a bit of emphasis on size with England ahead of the World Cup but coaches want different things and with the way the game’s speeding up, props can’t just scrum anymore, you’ve got to have X-factor around the pitch.

“That’s what I’m working towards and it’s been going pretty well.”

Brookes added: “Everybody goes in and out of form and it’s been annoying at times, but I’m working hard to rectify things and you can take inspiration from someone like Tom Wood, who was also left out by Eddie but fought his way back.”