“Gareth Southgate texted Steve” – England Football and Rugby Band Together After Three Lions Reach Euros Final

The Summer of 2024 has certainly been an exciting one for English sports fans. Whilst Lewis Hamilton took home the checkered flag from Silverstone, Jimmy Anderson gets set to play his final Test match as an England cricketer. Wimbledon has once again been an enjoyable spectacle, and the England rugby tour got off to a flying start in Japan.

Steve Borthwick’s men then came agonisingly close to defeating the All Blacks upon New Zealand soil. And of course, England have reached the final of Euro 2024 with the nation rallied into a chorus of ‘it’s coming home’. It’s the efforts of Gareth Southgate’s side which whipped the England rugby team into a frenzy of jubilant celebration, as the squad watched Ollie Watkins score the extra time winner against the Netherlands, to book England a place in the final this Sunday.

The cross-sport support has certainly been felt from the other side of the world, as England captain Jamie George revealed that his head coach had been in recent contact with the England football manager. Speaking just a matter of hours after Watkins’ goal against Holland, the proud Aston Villa fan expressed his delight in seeing the England squad reach the Berlin final, as Southgate’s men take on Spain this weekend.

“My greatest Instagram follow is the Villa official account, that was huge, that day is a day I will remember for very long time. We went nuts in the team room (after Watkin’s goal), nuts, it was unbelievable, I am a very proud Villain (Aston Villa fan).

“Apparently they (England football) were all watching our game on Saturday (against New Zealand), Gareth Southgate texted Steve to say they were watching us, quite cool, a great crossover.”

“That is the power of sport, how good is that? There is the joy the England football team are bringing us and hopefully we will be able to do that for a lot of people back home too. For English sport in general this month has been absolutely amazing with the Euros, Wimbledon and the cricket with Jimmy Anderson’s last Test. There is so much to be excited about and we just hope we can keep that positive curve of English sport going.”

“Marcus was in charge of the play list and he was putting on the classic football chants, ‘Southgate you’re the one, that was a popular one’. There is not a ‘Borthers’ version yet and I can’t imagine he is mad on it, we’ll keep building on it.”

Jamie George’s England side can contribute to this incredible month of sport, should they achieve an incredible feat this Saturday against the All Blacks. New Zealand have not lost at Eden Park in 30 years, with the opportunity of a lifetime presenting itself to England, with the English sporting spirit hitting a fever-pitch 18,000 km away.

There is no denying the magnitude of the occasion, whenever the All Blacks put their three decade long undfeated streak on the line. The likes of Maro Itoje, Ben Earl and Steve Borthwick have all addressed the ‘Eden Park element’ in the extensive pre-match coverage, with Jamie George next up to share his two cents upon the imposing Auckland stadium.

“It is an awesome place to play rugby. It creates a very hostile environment which I love, I think it is brilliant, the noise around the haka is amazing when you play there. You have got to respect the record they have there because it is incredible really, but at the same time, it is a field with grass on it, two sets of posts, they have got 15 players, we have got 15 players, let’s have a go.

“We have got a lot of respect for what they have done but do we want to be the team to put our hands up to be the ones to break the record, absolutely, that is why we are here.”

Unfortunately for the England players, they may not be unable to watch the footballers pursue the nation’s first major trophy since 1966. Borthwick’s squad are scheduled to fly back home whilst the match is being played in Germany, with George and his teammates hoping to watch the action several thousand feet in the air.

With the footballing success fresh on the minds of the reporting media today, the opportunity presented itself to ask Steve Borthwick about his interactions with Gareth Southgate. It was revealed that the two sporting coaches are actually members of the same WhatsApp group, and with so many football fanatics amongst the rugby team, Borthwick has been relaying the messages from the waistcoat-donning manager.

“We’ve got so many football fans in the room, cricket fans seeing Jimmy Anderson’s last Test for England this week as well. Guys are following that. It certainly does (lift spirits), and seeing the boys jumping and cheering when we scored this morning, it was brilliant to see. Seeing them sing the songs on the bus to training… they enjoyed it. There’s a good feel amongst the guys, they’re enjoying being here and the experience. We’re looking forward to the game on Saturday.

“I have enormous respect for him (Southgate). He’s been incredibly helpful and supportive to me personally. With a group of coaches we are on a WhatsApp group together, and he’s very generous with his thoughts. He came and spoke to the team before the Rugby World Cup, and I went and met with him earlier on this year to pick his brain on a few things.

“I’m just delighted watching his team progress. There’s always pressure on the England team – whether it’s football, rugby, cricket. The way he clearly handles that, and leads that group, as an outside observer, and gets the players to trust the process… now they’re competing in the final this weekend.”

Borthwick was then asked if he had learned anything from the England football manager, as it is speculated that Southgate will step down from the FA after the culmination of Euro 2024. Borthwick expressed how he had an initial run in with the former England defender some years ago, with the same helpful advice repeated ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign.

“I remember speaking to him about this several years ago and he reiterated it before the World Cup: making sure you get your house in order. You get to tournaments and some teams don’t perform. Some teams get knocked out in the group stages.

“You expect to go all the way and you get knocked out in the group stages. Make sure you trust in getting your house in order. If you do that you can keep getting better and keep progressing through the tournament. That is something we tried to do at the last World Cup.”

Both England’s fixture against the All Blacks and the Three Lions’ final aginst Spain has plenty on the line. Whilst Southgate’s men look to bring England home a major trophy, Borthwick’s squad are out to end a 30-year-long reign of dominance heralded by the All Blacks at Eden Park. Borthwick is not understating the significance of the record, yet the former lock expressed how the pressure is firmly upon the shoulders of the New Zealanders, as England enter the Auckland arena with a freedom to attack the match.

“Just concentrate on the present.” Borthwick said. “We are not avoiding it (the Eden Park record) We address things. There is a lot of talk this week about the record. It is not our record, it is their record. They are the ones who have to try and keep it. It is not us. That is the pressure and expectation that is on them.

“When I was leaving Dunedin, there was a New Zealand supporter who said how well he thought we had done but he said, ‘You will get beaten next week and next week we will beat you with style’. He said. ‘Oh really?’ I said, ‘Yes, we didn’t play with style.’ So, there is an expectation that New Zealand will beat us with style. It is their record. That is the pressure on them. Hopefully we can cause them some problems.”

It was evident to see that Scott Robertson is already feeling the pressure that comes with being All Blacks head coach. The former Crusaders boss underwent his first run at the helm of New Zealand, and was at times spotted in the coaching box lashing out in frustration. This is a rare sign from Kiwi coaches, with the likes of Steve Hansen and Ian Foster able to keep their cool under the most pressurised of circumstances.

“The result is super important.” Borthwick continued. “We discussed earlier on in the week, there is lots of talk about history this week. With everything around this game, there is lots of talk about history. I said, ‘Take care of the present, take care of this week to help build this team’s future. That is what the focus has been. Can we get better this week? We go into every game aiming to win.

“We were really disappointed we didn’t (win) last weekend. They (New Zealand coaches) spoke afterwards about being relieved. They talked a lot afterwards about relief. By watching them and seeing what was going on in their coach’s box we certainly caused some stress and hopefully we can do that again this week.”