Lawrence: Eddie's tough love was the making of me

Ollie Lawrence has revealed he questioned why Eddie Jones was "on his case so much" when he was the England head coach but has since reached the conclusion the Australian's home truths have been the making of him.

- Gerard Meagher

Lawrence won his first cap under Jones - who will face his former employers at Twickenham for the first time on Sunday when England host Japan - in 2020 but failed to make an impact on the international stage despite his fine form for Worcester.

Jones went on to criticise Lawrence's attitude, writing in his book released in November 2021 that, "the way that some of the media raves about him you would think he's already assured of becoming one of the best players in the world. He might do that, one day, but his attitude was not hungry or disciplined enough."

The 25-year-old was not picked by Jones again but when Steve Borthwick took over Lawrence became a key part of his England side in the 2023 Six Nations and was named Premiership player of the year a few months later on the back of his fine form for Bath. This year he has started nine Tests in succession with Henry Slade in a demonstration of how integral both players have become under Borthwick.