Ellis Genge hails England team-mates for not buckling under Wales pressure

Ellis Genge insists England’s ability to withstand a customary Wales fightback at Twickenham is a result of the closer ties forged off the pitch.

A theme of Eddie Jones’ tenure has been the vulnerability when a comfortable lead begins to dissolve under pressure from defiant opposition, a weakness that was most brutally exposed during a 38-38 draw with Scotland in 2019.

The tendency to collapse abruptly was also evident in Cardiff last year but when a 17-0 lead was threatened by Wales in the second half on Saturday, England rallied to win 23-19 in the Guinness Six Nations round three clash.

The home pack, with Genge acting as their spearhead, provided the necessary resilience as the result hung in the balance at 17-12 and the Leicester prop credits the removal of past cliques for the tenacity shown.

In his recent book ‘Leadership’, Jones spoke of the harmful ripples caused by Saracens’ influence on the squad culminating in a fifth-place finish in the 2021 Six Nations.

“In previous years we would probably have started bitching a little bit at each other, shouting. We would have become a little bit disjointed,” said Genge in reference to the response after Nick Tompkins ran in the second of Wales’ three tries.

“But there wasn’t one minute out there, even when we conceded two on the bounce in reasonably quick succession, when any of us were bitching or moaning at each other. It was ‘what’s the next job?’. That’s what you saw out there.

“It has come from changes off the pitch. We’ve got a huge focus on togetherness. It’s a bit of a cliche, but we’re all genuinely tight. We spend so much time with each other off the pitch.

“There are genuine relationships in this squad now as opposed to in the years gone by when it might have