Steve Borthwick’s spiky post-match comments after England’s win in Argentina were unlike him.I worked closely alongside Steve with both Japan and England, so I know very well he’s a methodical man. He’s not often prone to emotion or strong statements in the media. That’s why his latest press conference has made headlines.When questioned by journalists on his team’s four second-half yellow cards in their 31-24 victory over the Pumas, Steve responded: ‘As ever, you guys (media) concentrate upon the negativity. I love it. You’re my negativity committee. It’s lovely coming in and talking to you again.’There was real emotion in those words. I’ve no doubt Steve would have been feeling under severe pressure going into the game in Santiago del Estero. Equally, I’m also sure he’d have felt a degree of vindication by the result in what was a must-win game.That’s why he went on the front foot post-match. I think it was a good move. I don’t mind it at all. Over the years I’ve not been afraid of throwing a few bombs out there in press conferences. I’ve learned that it’s not always the best idea but at times, there’s nothing wrong with saying how you feel.Coaches are only human and when you’re under pressure, as Steve has been this year, sometimes that all boils up to the surface. I’ve been in Steve’s shoes as England coach and the pressure is immense. It’s the same for all the coaches in the country’s three main sports – football, cricket and rugby. Eddie Jones was impressed by Immanuel Feyi-Waboso’s performance for England in their victory over Argentina Steve Borthwick hit back at the ‘negativity committee’ in the wake of England’s victoryYou’ve seen the heat Thomas Tuchel and Brendon McCullum have also had to deal with this summer. Tuchel has led England’s footballers to their best World Cup finish since 1966, but he’s still copped plenty of flak for his supposed negative tactics in the semi-final defeat by Argentina.McCullum has lost his job as England Test cricket coach after a poor run of form. As an England coach in any sport, it’s tough to win. If you deliver victories, they’re seen as expected. If you lose, you should be sacked.Steve has already experienced plenty of highs and lows as England rugby boss and I’ve no doubt that rollercoaster ride played a part in his latest comments. As a coach, press conferences are your chance to get the messages you want to give across to the players and the fans.You go into them with a plan. So too do the journalists. Your job is to get the headlines you want and not the ones the media are aiming for! That doesn’t always happen and there are occasions when emotions take over and your plan goes out the window.I don’t know if Steve planned to say what he did, but I would doubt it. I think he was entitled to say what he did because I thought England’s latest win was very impressive.The media analysis has focused on the four second-half yellow cards given to Jack van Poortvliet, Alex Coles, Henry Pollock and Emmanuel Iyogun which at one point left England down to 12 men. They have received 14 cards in their last 10 Tests, so the issue was a valid discussion point for the press.But as much as the media are entitled to ask questions on what they see as the main issue, as a coach you are also allowed to focus on your point of view. If I was in Steve’s shoes, I’d have been very, very pleased. The context of the game taking place just after England’s heartbreaking football World Cup defeat by the same nation added an extra layer of emotion. As such, I thought their start was absolutely outstanding.In the first half, they were direct and purposeful, scoring three tries and playing as an England team should. It was really impressive. I thought Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was out of this world. You don’t often see a winger dominate a game as he did. He was always looking for work and his strong carrying put England on the front foot. So too did Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum. Those three players were my standouts. The second period was different.Argentina went to the air and had some joy winning the ball back there. That allowed them to put pressure on England, which led to the yellow cards. It’s far from ideal to lose four men to the sin bin and better teams than Argentina would have punished England.Remarkably dramatic end to the game, which saw TMO overturn Angus Gardner’s on-field decision of a try, giving England the tightest of wins. Should the try have stood? ? pic.twitter.com/w0MiNVOamD— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) July 19, 2026 Had Henry Slade not tackled Bautista Delguy into touch at the death, England might have drawn the game. But the bottom line is they didn’t and I thought England did very well to get out of trouble with the tries from Feyi-Waboso and Marcus Smith. That relief at coming through such adversity would also have played a part in what Steve said to the media.Referee Angus Gardner awarded a try to Delguy on the field, but television match official Brett Cronan insisted to him the player was in touch. I think the correct decision was reached in the end.At the same time, I also think we’ve got to get a clearer protocol on when the TMO should come in. My view is he or she should only be able to make a decision on an incident three phases or fewer before a try is scored or for an out-and-out red card.The TMO should always be able to tell the on-field referee what they’ve seen. But the main official has to have ownership of the game. Constant checking with the TMO is not good for the game. It takes far too long.Two wins from three matches this summer was a decent way for Steve and England to bounce back from what was, statistically, the country’s worst-ever Six Nations. But what will be occupying Steve’s mind in the next few months is how his team can make the jump to being able to compete with international rugby’s top sides.At the moment, I don’t think England can. The final round of the Nations Championship at the weekend showed that South Africa, New Zealand, Ireland and France are well ahead of the rest. Then, there is quite a big gap to the likes of England. Four England players were sent to the sin bin by referee Angus Gardner during the second half of Saturday’s clash England need to find a way to improve their discipline ahead of next year’s World CupSouth Africa have been able to use countless players and still win. France have similarly impressive depth. New Zealand have had a promising start to life under Dave Rennie. Steve’s challenge is to be really, really clear on how he can get closer to these teams. England have to be able to put pressure on teams for longer periods. At the moment, they release the valve too often.They did it at times in their defeat by South Africa, but not for long enough. Even against a team like Argentina, who haven’t been playing well, England let their opposition get on top. That’s where the ill-discipline and yellow cards came from.As I wrote after the South Africa game, I wouldn’t be worried about England’s discipline as an overriding issue. Yellow cards are a byproduct of being under pressure. What Steve has to work out is how to stop that happening in the first place.If he doesn’t solve that conundrum, England won’t be genuine contenders to win next year’s World Cup which will always be the target for the RFU’s top bosses. And at that point, the pressure will soon return.
EDDIE JONES: This is why Steve Borthwick was RIGHT to hit back at ‘negativity committee’ criticising England’s discipline in Argentina win – but here’s the one big issue he MUST fix if England are to win the World Cup
Steve Borthwick’s spiky post-match comments after England’s win in Argentina were unlike him.I worked closely alongside Steve with both Japan and England, so I know very well he’s a methodical man. He’s not often prone to emotion or strong statements in the media. That’s why his latest press conference has made headlines.When questioned by journalists on his team’s four second-half yellow cards in their 31-24 victory over the Pumas, Steve responded: ‘As ever, you guys (media) concentrate upon the negativity. I love it. You’re my negativity committee. It’s lovely coming in and talking to you again.’There was real emotion in those words. I’ve no doubt Steve would have been feeling under severe pressure going into the game in Santiago del Estero. Equally, I’m also sure he’d have felt a degree of vindication by the result in what was a must-win game.That’s why he went on the front foot post-match. I think it was a good move. I don’t mind it at all. Over the years I’ve not been afraid of throwing a few bombs out there in press conferences. I’ve learned that it’s not always the best idea but at times, there’s nothing wrong with saying how you feel.Coaches are only human and when you’re under pressure, as Steve has been this year, sometimes that all boils up to the surface. I’ve been in Steve’s shoes as England coach and the pressure is immense. It’s the same for all the coaches in the country’s three main sports – football, cricket and rugby. Eddie Jones was impressed by Immanuel Feyi-Waboso’s performance for England in their victory over Argentina Steve Borthwick hit back at the ‘negativity committee’ in the wake of England’s victoryYou’ve seen the heat Thomas Tuchel and Brendon McCullum have also had to deal with this summer. Tuchel has led England’s footballers to their best World Cup finish since 1966, but he’s still copped plenty of flak for his supposed negative tactics in the semi-final defeat by Argentina.McCullum has lost his job as England Test cricket coach after a poor run of form. As an England coach in any sport, it’s tough to win. If you deliver victories, they’re seen as expected. If you lose, you should be sacked.Steve has already experienced plenty of highs and lows as England rugby boss and I’ve no doubt that rollercoaster ride played a part in his latest comments. As a coach, press conferences are your chance to get the messages you want to give across to the players and the fans.You go into them with a plan. So too do the journalists. Your job is to get the headlines you want and not the ones the media are aiming for! That doesn’t always happen and there are occasions when emotions take over and your plan goes out the window.I don’t know if Steve planned to say what he did, but I would doubt it. I think he was entitled to say what he did because I thought England’s latest win was very impressive.The media analysis has focused on the four second-half yellow cards given to Jack van Poortvliet, Alex Coles, Henry Pollock and Emmanuel Iyogun which at one point left England down to 12 men. They have received 14 cards in their last 10 Tests, so the issue was a valid discussion point for the press.But as much as the media are entitled to ask questions on what they see as the main issue, as a coach you are also allowed to focus on your point of view. If I was in Steve’s shoes, I’d have been very, very pleased. The context of the game taking place just after England’s heartbreaking football World Cup defeat by the same nation added an extra layer of emotion. As such, I thought their start was absolutely outstanding.In the first half, they were direct and purposeful, scoring three tries and playing as an England team should. It was really impressive. I thought Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was out of this world. You don’t often see a winger dominate a game as he did. He was always looking for work and his strong carrying put England on the front foot. So too did Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum. Those three players were my standouts. The second period was different.Argentina went to the air and had some joy winning the ball back there. That allowed them to put pressure on England, which led to the yellow cards. It’s far from ideal to lose four men to the sin bin and better teams than Argentina would have punished England.Remarkably dramatic end to the game, which saw TMO overturn Angus Gardner’s on-field decision of a try, giving England the tightest of wins. Should the try have stood? ? pic.twitter.com/w0MiNVOamD— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) July 19, 2026 Had Henry Slade not tackled Bautista Delguy into touch at the death, England might have drawn the game. But the bottom line is they didn’t and I thought England did very well to get out of trouble with the tries from Feyi-Waboso and Marcus Smith. That relief at coming through such adversity would also have played a part in what Steve said to the media.Referee Angus Gardner awarded a try to Delguy on the field, but television match official Brett Cronan insisted to him the player was in touch. I think the correct decision was reached in the end.At the same time, I also think we’ve got to get a clearer protocol on when the TMO should come in. My view is he or she should only be able to make a decision on an incident three phases or fewer before a try is scored or for an out-and-out red card.The TMO should always be able to tell the on-field referee what they’ve seen. But the main official has to have ownership of the game. Constant checking with the TMO is not good for the game. It takes far too long.Two wins from three matches this summer was a decent way for Steve and England to bounce back from what was, statistically, the country’s worst-ever Six Nations. But what will be occupying Steve’s mind in the next few months is how his team can make the jump to being able to compete with international rugby’s top sides.At the moment, I don’t think England can. The final round of the Nations Championship at the weekend showed that South Africa, New Zealand, Ireland and France are well ahead of the rest. Then, there is quite a big gap to the likes of England. Four England players were sent to the sin bin by referee Angus Gardner during the second half of Saturday’s clash England need to find a way to improve their discipline ahead of next year’s World CupSouth Africa have been able to use countless players and still win. France have similarly impressive depth. New Zealand have had a promising start to life under Dave Rennie. Steve’s challenge is to be really, really clear on how he can get closer to these teams. England have to be able to put pressure on teams for longer periods. At the moment, they release the valve too often.They did it at times in their defeat by South Africa, but not for long enough. Even against a team like Argentina, who haven’t been playing well, England let their opposition get on top. That’s where the ill-discipline and yellow cards came from.As I wrote after the South Africa game, I wouldn’t be worried about England’s discipline as an overriding issue. Yellow cards are a byproduct of being under pressure. What Steve has to work out is how to stop that happening in the first place.If he doesn’t solve that conundrum, England won’t be genuine contenders to win next year’s World Cup which will always be the target for the RFU’s top bosses. And at that point, the pressure will soon return.