Inside story of tough love that revived Tigers
Steve Borthwick has taken Leicester from lowest point to within touching distance of title. Here is how he did it ...
Freddie Burns has never been shy of voicing an opinion and the affable fly-half is in his second stint at Leicester Tigers. That makes him a prime candidate to reflect upon how Steve Borthwick has guided a proud club back to Twickenham.
Burns was not around for Leicester’s leanest and most chaotic period, yet has experienced stark change since returning to the East Midlands this season after four years away. “We really leave no stone unturned,” Burns says. “In the past, it was very much: ‘Right, we’ve got a good pack, let’s try to kick the s--- out of them and see what happens.’ Now, there is a little bit more finesse to it.”
Borthwick’s reputation for diligence and technical acumen preceded him. Eddie Jones, a colleague at Saracens, Japan and then England, has joked about his lieutenant’s affinity with laptops. On the back of an esteemed playing career, line-out choreography was regarded as the former lock’s chief field of expertise. Regardless of the result today in the Premiership final, Borthwick has engendered a remarkable turnaround that has required a broader range of skills.
Borthwick turned up at Tigers to a backdrop of Covid restrictions and wage cuts, with animosity bubbling. Over the intervening two years, Leicester have used 66 players in the Premiership. Of those, 38 played their first league match for the club – or first back at the club after rejoining, in the case of Burns – since the 2019-20 season halted for the pandemic. Adding coaches, backroom staff and board members, the number of people to have left Leicester subsequent to Borthwick’s arrival runs past 50.
Canny recruitment, and the data analytics of consultancy Oval Insights, is an important strand of the story, as is some foundation stones put in place by Jan Mcginity, head of recruitment until December
2020. However, things got worse before they improved.
Although relegation scrap against
Newcastle in
2019 has been outlined as
Leicester’s trough, heavy defeats in Borthwick’s first matches were gruesome.
Standards needed to be re-established, and feathers ruffled. On one of his first days at training at Oval Park, Borthwick halted a forwards session and ordered the players off the field. The message was clear. If they were not willing to work, they did not have to hang around.
James Haskell has known Borthwick as an opponent, a team-mate, a captain and a coach with England and the British and Irish Lions. He believes that the spiky influence of Jones has been crucial. “Steve won what he deserved to as a player and went to work as a coach under Eddie Jones,” Haskell says. “Eddie is one of the fiercest coaches in the world. He knows how to get the best out of players and who needs a carrot and who needs a stick.
“Steve is naturally quite quiet. He always put the extra work in as a coach and he’s improved at having those difficult conversations, which didn’t come naturally to him. I could not love Borthers any more.”
That edge is complemented by softer touches. Players’ families are encouraged to visit and when internationals return to the club, they are greeted by video montages of their highlights. Another counterbalance is the blend of characters within Borthwick’s young coaching team.
“Steve likes a laugh, but he’s very serious. And the yin to his yang is [conditioning guru] Aled Walters, who brings the energy and you can have a bit of craic with,” Burns says.
As well as Walters, defence coach Kevin Sinfield is a charismatic and inspiring figure. Richard Wigglesworth is an outgoing presence, while local lads Matt Smith and Brett Deacon embody Leicester’s traditions. Tom Harrison’s success with scrummaging speaks for itself.
Borthwick’s mission has been likened to turning a tanker around, and that has been achieved with razor-sharp strategy and tactical clarity as fuel. Selection is a skill that he has developed, too. He picked Ellis Genge – who, along with George Ford, will be embarking on his last dance for the
Tigers today – and Freddie Steward among his replacements for the first meeting with Saracens this season. Tigers came on strong to win 13-12, and you can be sure there will be bespoke plans for today’s decider.
Leicester, with Borthwick at the
helm, are indeed back where they belong.