Hybrid contracts delayed as Borthwick begins All Blacks preparations

As head coach flies out to New Zealand, new deals unlikely until next season with only Maro Itoje and Jamie George receiving offers so far

England head coach Steve Borthwick confirmed that the Enhanced Elite Player Squad contracts are unlikely to come into effect until the start of next season with only Maro Itoje and Jamie George receiving an offer in principle so far.
Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney first announced his intention to bring in the form of ‘hybrid contract’ in October, but progress has slowed. Meanwhile seven members of England’s World Cup squad are set to be playing in France next season.
Captain George believes the delay in bringing in the new system has not contributed to the exodus of players. However, by the time England head to New Zealand it is likely that Manu Tuilagi will have signed for an overseas club, rendering him unavailable for selection.
“People are making personal choices,” George said. “If you feel like you’re good enough and you know you’re going to be good enough to get an enhanced contract, you would stay in the country. If you want to, for whatever other reason, go and leave then I think that decision has already been made.
“We’re aware that these contracts probably will be in place as of next season. We don’t know in what capacity or what value or who might get them but I think if you’re aspirational enough and you want to play in England and stay in England then you’d stay in England.”
Borthwick will fly to New Zealand on Monday as he immediately starts plotting a first series victory against the All Blacks this summer and, while the details have yet to be confirmed, Borthwick hopes to avoid a repeat of situations like when he discovered centre Ollie Lawrence’s injury as he was heading to the Six Nations launch in Dublin.
“Going forward we need to make sure that when we have a Test coming that those players are available and fit from the start of the tournament,” Borthwick said. “All details have not been confirmed. I’m waiting to have them and understand them. In terms of understanding where our players are at, so there are no surprises at the start of the tournament – the night the squad is finalised, finding out players are unavailable – situations like that we won’t have in the future.”
Despite finishing the Six Nations campaign with a 33-31 defeat against France, England will head into the summer with a sense of momentum after claiming the scalp of champions Ireland. They face Eddie Jones’s Japan on June 22 followed by a two-Test series against New Zealand in Dunedin and Auckland on July 6 and 13.
Borthwick confirmed that he intends to take his strongest possible squad for the tour in Scott Robertson’s first matches in charge of New Zealand. “I’ll be taking the very best players that are available for selection at that point in time,” Borthwick said. 
“I am on a plane to New Zealand on Monday, I have got to go and put plans in place for where we are going to be and how we will do it, so we prepare properly.
“I did Japan just before the start of the Six Nations, with a visit there, and then Aled [Walters] is going to Japan as well, after New Zealand. In a week’s time we will understand exactly where we are going with our training programmes, our locations, our venues, so we give the team the best opportunity to get the result we want.”
England’s third-place finish in the Six Nations was their best since winning the title in 2020, but it was the manner in which they finished the tournament against Ireland and France that inspires the most confidence. Scrum-half Danny Care believes that the “sky’s the limit” with Borthwick going to the ends of the Earth to find any edge he can.
“I think that [going to New Zealand] says it all,” Care said. “That sums him up. He is always wanting to get better. That’s one of his big phrases, he hates looking back, he is always looking forward. Straight after the game he is thinking how can we improve, how can we get better.
“All I will say about Steve is that he is the man. He is one of the best coaches I have ever worked with. His attention to detail, how honest he is, how much you trust him and he is the one to take this team where it is going to go. The sky’s the limit.
“I’ve got no doubt that this team is going to hit some massive heights and I think you’ve seen big signs of that. Not many teams in the world will be able to live with that [attacking intensity], matched with the defensive physicality which I think has gone to another level.”