Steve Borthwick has received backing from England\u2019s 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning head coach Sir Clive Woodward, who insists that he should take them into the 2027 global tournament.<\/b><\/p>\n
The current boss finds himself under severe pressure following a dreadful Six Nations campaign which saw them suffer four successive defeats to finish in fifth position.<\/p>\n
That came after 12 victories in a row, which left many thinking they were in the hunt for a Grand Slam.<\/p>\n
Ex-England players want Borthwick gone<\/p>\n
It went badly wrong, however, and has led to some pundits calling for his head, with former England<\/a> fly-halves Andy Goode and Stuart Barnes particularly scathing.<\/p>\n But Woodward<\/a>, who is not afraid of voicing his opinion, is not one of them, though, and believes that Borthwick<\/a> should remain in the post following the performance in the Six Nations<\/a> finale.<\/p>\n \u201cLast Saturday showed me Borthwick is good enough to lead England into the next World Cup.\u201d he wrote in his Daily Mail<\/a> column.<\/p>\n While England succumbed to an agonising defeat, the 48-46 loss suggested that the squad still believe in the head coach.<\/p>\n However, the criticism has been impossible to ignore and Woodward has told Borthwick to take a \u201cgood break\u201d before focusing on the Nations Championship.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s exactly what I did after England were knocked out of the 1999 World Cup,\u201d he wrote. \u201cBorthwick has been under a huge amount of pressure and that comes with the job. You need time to decompress.<\/p>\n \u201cIt can be incredibly tough to be England coach when things aren\u2019t going right. When I took on the role in 1997, we didn\u2019t win any of my first four games, and in the first match of the 1998 Five Nations, we were beaten by France.<\/p>\n \u201cOur second game was against Wales and I remember ahead of that match, I was driving my daughter Jess to school. The radio was on in the car and Will Carling, the former captain, was on as a guest.<\/p>\n \u201cHe said if England lost to Wales, I should be sacked. Jess was 12 and in the back seat and my wife Jayne was in the front. I cannot repeat what Jess said about Carling, but it certainly was accurate and made us all laugh!<\/p>\n \u201cThat was a different time, but it shows how the England job is all-consuming and can affect you and your family. That is as true now as it was then.<\/p>\n \u201cBorthwick needs an RFU review like a hole in the head. What\u2019s best for him instead is a complete break and time away from rugby with his family.\u201d<\/p>\n