RFU backs Steve Borthwick despite England’s historic Six Nations loss in Italy

Steve Borthwick has received the backing of Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney despite a run of three straight losses

The Rugby Football Union has backed Steve Borthwick to continue as England head coach for the summer’s Nations Championship fixtures despite a desperate losing run but the chief executive, Bill Sweeney, stopped short of pledging his support through to next year’s World Cup.

Borthwick is under intense scrutiny after England’s first defeat by Italy on Saturday extended their losing streak to three following miserable losses to Scotland and Ireland, with the former wing and Guardian columnist Ugo Monye among those questioning the head coach’s position. England are on course for their worst Six Nations and begin their summer Nations Championship fixtures with a daunting trip to South Africa.

After the 23-18 defeat in Rome, Borthwick said he believed he was still the man to lead England and expressed belief he had the RFU’s support. His contract runs to the 2027 World Cup and publicly he has the backing of the players, with the captain Maro Itoje pointing to the 12-match winning run that was ended by Scotland last month.

In an RFU statement Sweeney attempted to douse the flames and said “we remain fully committed to supporting” Borthwick and his coaches, acknowledging England have failed to meet expectations.

Sweeney has also promised open dialogue with the head coach to ascertain why results and performances have nosedived but backed Borthwick to continue for England’s final Six Nations match against France and the summer matches against the Springboks, Fiji and Argentina. He made no mention of the World Cup in 18 months’ time, however. In 2022, after a disappointing Six Nations, Eddie Jones survived the summer after a series win against Australia but a poor autumn prompted Sweeney to sack him and install Borthwick, just nine months before the 2023 World Cup.

“After a 12-match winning run, these past three results have been hugely disappointing, and we feel that just as much as everyone else,’” said Sweeney. “Steve and his coaching team are working tirelessly to make improvements, and we remain fully committed to supporting them and the players as they face France this weekend and then look ahead to the Nations Championship.

“Part of that support is being open about what hasn’t gone right during this Six Nations and making sure everyone has a clear sense of how we move through those challenges together. That’s something we’ll be talking through and working on in the days and weeks ahead.

“We will work together to understand and rectify why we have been unable to meet the expectations and anticipation going into these games. England fans rightly expect a team that learns and grows through adversity, and we’re confident this group will do everything they can to deliver that.”

Itoje, meanwhile, has defended the beleaguered head coach, insisting the players must take responsibility for England’s rapid decline. The captain, whose 65th-minute yellow card was England’s eighth of the championship and reduced them to 13 men with Sam Underhill already in the sin-bin, lamented his side’s discipline but said Borthwick was the man to take England forward.

Itoje said: “Steve is definitely the right guy for the job. He’s a fantastic coach. He’s led us to 12 wins, big performances against the All Blacks, big wins. So obviously, it’s not where we want to be at the moment, there’s no hiding away from that. We have to take responsibility for where we are. But Steve is definitely the right guy, and the rest of the coaches are, they’ve been fantastic. It’s on us as players to be better.

“We as players have to own it. We’re the ones on the pitch. We’re the ones doing what we’re doing on the pitch. So I think it’s our responsibility to make sure that we apply Steve’s vision, we apply Steve’s game plan, because he’s been very clear. He’s been very thorough, as he always is. We need to be better. We’re the ones on the field. He can’t play the game for us. Myself as captain and the rest of the senior guys, I think we take responsibility. The answers are within that group. The answers are within the players, within the coaches. So as a group of senior players, we need to be better.”