Borthwick reflects on dramatic Leicester turnaround

It is testament to the players and coaching staff of the Leicester Tigers that just two seasons ago they finished second from the bottom on the log and, now, face the prospect of competing in the Premiership final this Saturday.  

Quite a turnaround, it has to be said, and is owed in no small part to the mind of Head Coach Steve Borthwick, whose arrival at the club heralded their rise. 

Reflecting, Borthwick recalls his first game in charge – a 26-13 loss to Exeter Chiefs in the 2019-20 season. 

"That game jumps out. I saw something to work with," Borthwick said. 

"It was my first game. We played Exeter Chiefs away. About 20 minutes into game we were 6-0 up, then Exeter turned it, scored two or three tries quickly and I thought 'right, we are going to be tested here. What is going to happen?' 

"They could have turned that into 50 points very fast, because they are that good. 

"I saw the guys fight really hard. I thought George [Ford] was excellent that day. It was a disappointing loss, but in a sense I thought 'right, we have fight'. 

"All the technical and tactical aspects of what you want to do as a team lies secondary to characteristics you have as a team. 

"I came in to a new group, a new team, they didn't know me a huge amount, and I was trying to learn about them quickly. To see that then, I thought we have potential for a foundation." 

Leicester achieved the remarkable feat of going the whole season occupying the top of the table, and Borthwick is hoping for a final performance which will do justice to their fantastic efforts during the season. 

"I want us to be the best versions of ourselves right now, in this moment," he said. 

"After this game we'll deal with whatever comes next, and I'm not bothered about what happened in the past. 

"Where we are right now is all we can control. That's the theme this week."