Steve Borthwick mops at his brow, the England head coach feeling the heat. The sun shines bright in the Veneto, where Borthwick and his side have decamped for a vital week of hot weather training. This summer of preparation is all the more important after squandering a World Cup cycle, four years of work having to be done almost on fast forward.
There are certainly worse places for those preparations to intensify, but with temperatures up over 40C, and the humidity stifling as they train, England’s players are not finding Verona quite so fair.
“When we introduced to the players why we’ve come to this camp in Verona to train in the heat, one of the reasons was for physical adaptation,” Borthwick explains. “There are physiological benefits to training in a more temperate climate. I think that will be beneficial for us.
“It also affects the way you think. When you train in the heat, and I’ve seen it and experienced it as a player, it is important to think clearly under a different type of pressure and challenge the players to think in the situations we give them when they’re under the physical and emotional strain of training in the heat. That’s also a factor.”
Some teams prefer to test themselves at altitude. Wales, for example, are up in the Alps at a favoured mountain retreat of Warren Gatland. England, with only one spare week to take the squad away, elected for trial by fire instead.
Beyond the obvious benefits of a week of training, a few days away offer an opportunity for a squad to further bond, build relationships and keep things fresh, away from England’s regular Teddington and Bagshot bases. All 41 of England’s fit training squad members travelled and trained fully; Ollie Lawrence, one of several injury absentees, has come, too, with England hopeful the centre will be fit for their second warm-up game.
Verona, at first, seems an odd choice, the local rugby side of little renown, lurking in the second tier of Italy’s domestic structure – Serie A’s Hellas Verona are the town’s sporting obsession. But the Payanini Centre is a first-rate facility, built by a family of aggregate magnates and utilised by the Italian national side before the Six Nations. England went to Treviso four years ago, a trip that ended with an infamous bust-up between Ben Te’o and Mike Brown that ended the pair’s international careers. For various reasons, a return to the city was not favoured by Borthwick.
England’s staff now includes Aled Walters, appointed to lead the strength and conditioning programme. Walters’ performance expertise was highly valued as Borthwick turned around Leicester, and, before that, the affable Welshman was the fitness guru for South Africa’s 2019 World Cup winners.
England’s physical readiness is a key point targeted for improvement. The gap that must be closed to the top four sides in the world is vast and, while they will be aided by a friendly draw in France, time is tight. There is, then, an emphasis on making sure the non-negotiables are right. England may not be the biggest or best team at the World Cup, but they hope to be among the fittest.
“You’ve got to be physically equipped for the toughest situations in a game,” Borthwick says. “There are extreme moments within a game and Test matches are so tight. So, if you are not conditioned for those extreme moments, those are the ones which can make or break you.
“If you are conditioned better than the opposition for those extreme moments, you get the crucial score in a game. If not, you might concede the crucial score, or you make a poor decision.”
Given time off between a morning strength session and evening training, a number of players elected to go into the city itself, grappling with electric scooters by the Roman amphitheatre – new meeting old. There is that sense about this England squad, too. Beyond the young guns like Tom Willis and Henry Arundell, there is heaps of experience. Two players namechecked repeatedly by Borthwick since his selection first assembled have been Danny Care and Joe Marler, the Harlequins pair included to add a bit of attacking invention and set-piece solidity respectively.
England know they are up against it. The final squad of 33 for the World Cup will be named on 7 August, giving Borthwick just a single warm-up game to assess his options. Attitude, intensity and accuracy in these early weeks will be key as the head coach tries to narrow his selection down. And while the graft may be hard, if England transform themselves into genuine tournament contenders the summer swelter will be worth it.
“That’s the challenge I’ve given to the players,” says Borthwick. “I give them why we’re doing something; I don’t try and trick them. I say what we’re doing and the purpose behind it. The challenge is for them to excel, to bring their very best and we’ll move a bit further forward today. And tomorrow, we’ll move forward again.”
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