Borthwick waxes lyrical on Felix Jones as Irishman starts England chapter

Felix Jones was only confirmed as defence coach with Steve Borthwick’s England team on January 4th and yet new haunts have clearly made no dent in old habits.

EXCITING NEW ADDITIONS: Pictured is England Rugby Head Coach, Steve Borthwick at the launch of the 2024 Guinness Men’s Six Nations Championship at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. Pic:©INPHO/Ben Brady

Felix Jones has spent most of his coaching work in the shadows. Happily so. Never one to embrace the media duties that litter the game, it has fallen to his co-workers, bosses and players to speak for his impact during a four-year stint with the Springboks.

Those asked to delve into his work with the back-to-back world champions invariably leaned towards some variation on a familiar joke about the need to avoid bumping into the Irishman in the team hotel, especially if he was in the vicinity of a laptop.

Minutes could bleed into a half-hour if Jones started talking rugby.

Now with two World Cup medals after the South African successes in 2019 and 2023, Jones was only confirmed as defence coach with Steve Borthwick’s England team on January 4th and yet new haunts have clearly made no dent in old habits.

“He’s one of the most intense people I have ever met,” said Borthwick.

The former Leicester Tigers boss shared experiences of an hour spent on the phone with Jones in which he couldn’t get a word in edgeways, what with the stream of rugby knowledge pouring down the line from the other end.

Borthwick has been around the game. He is a no-nonsense man of the old stock who has crossed paths with an abundance of workaholics and deep thinkers, and yet this is a man who describes the Jones work ethic as “astounding”.

“This guy, I don’t know whether he sleeps.” 

Jones himself has expressed his gratitude to Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber for co-opting him onto the Munster staff during their brief stint in Limerick, and for bringing him on board with the Boks thereafter.

He explained last June about how nobody hands you a manual as a new coach: no blow-by-blow account of the process, the work-flow, how you set up your week. No tips on how to analyse the opposition, or deal with players.

He has been a quick learner and the experience of working with a Springbok coaching group that transformed the team from the depths of despair into a side that twice conquered the world game should be invaluable with an England team seeking a similar trajectory.

“He has the knowledge,” said Borthwick. “His understanding of areas of the game: we were sat the other day looking at some stuff on his laptop, where he was picking apart an area of the game. Picking it apart, an area of contact. And showing things that I don’t think I’ve ever heard any other coach discuss. So I think he has an incredible work ethic and that knowledge is groundbreaking that he has.

“And when he presented to the players last week, the room was deathly silent. When a coach is presenting up front, I usually come down the sides just to be able to scan across the players. Hardly blinking, and transfixed by what he is saying. That ability to do that is superb. So work ethic, incredible knowledge and grasp of concepts and he has the players’ attention.”