Steve Borthwick’s record with Leicester that earned England job

The former England lock has replaced Eddie Jones in charge of the national team

Steve Borthwick won a league title and reached a European final with Leicester (Ashley Western/PA) (PA Archive)

Steve Borthwick will look to build on a strong winning record with Leicester as he takes the reins as England head coach.

Eddie Jones’ successor took his former club to last season’s Premiership title as well as to a European final where they suffered a narrow defeat to Montpellier.

Borthwick took charge ahead of the 2020-21 season, leaving his role as England forwards coach under Jones.

That campaign was inconsistent, with 11 wins and 11 losses, but the following year saw the Tigers restored to the dominant force of years past.

They won 20 of their 24 games to top the table by seven points from Saracens before going on to beat them in the grand final. Borthwick’s side amassed a regular-season points difference of +274, recorded a four-try bonus point on 11 separate occasions and even claimed a losing bonus point in three of their four defeats.

This season brought a return to the mixed record of his debut campaign with four wins and four losses – while his final game in charge brought a first draw of his reign against Bristol.

Overall Borthwick’s side won 37 league games and lost 19, in addition to that one tie, and scored 1,481 points including 173 tries compared to 1,208 points and 149 tries conceded.

Leicester’s last piece of European silverware came in 2002 and Borthwick came as close as any coach to ending that drought, in the Challenge Cup in his debut season.

They went all the way to the final and led Montpellier 17-10 at Twickenham, only for Benoit Paillaugue’s penalty and Johan Goosen’s try to earn the French side a tense 18-17 win.

Last season saw them reach the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final, losing to four-time winners Leinster, and the Premiership Rugby Cup semi-finals where they were hammered 59-20 by London Irish.

Two Champions Cup wins along with two wins and two losses in the domestic cup this season leave Borthwick with an overall record of 56 wins, 24 defeats and one draw in charge of the Tigers. His side have outscored their combined opponents by 2,212 points to 1,714 and 268 tries to 211.