Dallaglio calls on Borthwick to pick a leader from pack
ENGLAND head coach Steve Borthwick has been urged to change his position over the England captaincy and give Ellis Genge a fresh chance to prove he can succeed in the role.
Borthwick went straight back to Owen Farrell as his team leader for the final Six Nations clash in Dublin after recalling him as his starting No. 10 with Marcus Smith making way.
The head coach seems sure now to keep Farrell in the post into August’s warm-up games and then the World Cup itself having seen Genge’s fleeting opportunity at the helm end in a 53-10 humiliation by France.
Yet former skipper Lawrence Dallaglio remains a firm believer that the best way to lead the side in the heat of Test battle on the field is by having someone in the pack and in prime
position to communicate and respond to match officials.
And he feels Genge is perfect for that role having shown his strength of character and personality for his country in recent times plus being one of the outstanding players despite England’s recent drop down the rankings.
The World Cup winner insists: “I always like it when a forward is the captain. The simple, overwhelming stat is that World Cups have been won when a forward has been the leader of the team. That tells you a lot.
“All the major decisions that happen on the field with the referee happen around the breakdown and scrum. So, naturally, you want someone deeply involved in that area to speak for the team. It’s not easy when your fly-half is captain and he’s standing away from where things are going on.
“I’ve been advocating for a long time a forward has to be the captain and he has to build that special relationship with the referee. You can’t talk to the referee much when you are the fly-half.
“Things went badly wrong against France in terms of performance and the result but it would be wrong to point a finger at the captaincy. That was a collective responsibility by a team which just didn’t turn up on the day either physically or mentally to cope with a very pumped up, outstanding French side.
“Genge has become a pivotal member of that England pack and one of the few guys virtually guaranteed his place. He’s clearly having a big impact on how England are trying to improve the setpiece and how they play.”