Rugby Football Union chief Bill Sweeney has expressed his disappointment after the sudden resignation of England defence coach Felix Jones, describing the departure as “deeply disappointing” and “completely unexpected.”
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Jones stepped down after just seven months in the role, with sources close to the Irishman suggesting he was “unhappy with the unstable working environment.”
In another setback for England, strength and conditioning coach Aled Walters has also left the camp, joining Andy Farrell’s Ireland set-up.
“I feel for Steve [Borthwick]. He has made some choices and has brought some people in and I feel for him at the moment.
“We’ve seen some good momentum and progression in terms of how the England team has been playing under Steve as head coach.
“There is huge excitement around the squad about how the team played at the back end of the Six Nations and on the summer tour to New Zealand, which was really encouraging.
“We’ve got the autumn coming up, so for that to happen was massively disappointing.
“What I can say though is that Steve has absolute 100 per cent support from us – from me personally and of the RFU.
“I can also say categorically he has the full support 100 per cent of the squad. The players are very keen to get this message across that they feel they’re building something special now.”
The current 36-man 2025 Lions squad, according to the bookies
The bolded players in our proposed Lions squad represent the starting XV.
BACK-THREE (6)
- Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland) – 1/16
- James Lowe (Ireland) – 1/8
- Hugo Keenan (Ireland) – 1/5
- Tommy Freeman (England) – 4/9
- Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (England) – 8/11
- Mack Hansen (Ireland) – 2/1
CENTRE (4)
- Bundee Aki (Ireland) – 1/5
- Ollie Lawrence (England) – 1/4
- Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland) – 2/7
- Robbie Henshaw (Ireland) – 8/11
FLY-HALVES (3)
- George Ford (England) – 1/10
- Marcus Smith (England) – 8/15
- Finn Russell (Scotland) – 8/11