England's Borthwick the latest to face the Farrell paradox

LONDON : Owen Farrell is not England's best flyhalf, best centre or best captain and his tackling now looks like a ban in waiting, yet for over a decade he has been undroppable under three coaching regimes and looks set to remain that way at the World Cup.

Stuart Lancaster, Eddie Jones and now Steve Borthwick, along with British & Irish Lions and various Saracens coaches along the way, have had absolute and unquestioning faith in the 31-year-old warrior with the winning mindset.

Many team mates have spoken about being almost awed by his professionalism, dedication and the standards he sets and expects of those around him, which is another reason coaches want him in their squads.

A year ago, on the eve of Farrell's 100th cap, Saracens and England hooker Jamie George said: "Owen has changed the way that English rugby has been played. He changed the mindset of the team, giving us the belief to play against teams like the All Blacks. The way that he fights and shows resilience, it's like nothing I've ever seen.

"There has not been a day I've trained with him throughout the last 15 years where I thought, 'He's having an off day today'. Every day he's relentless, wants to get better and has a drive that is not just internal because he's desperate to make every team that he plays for better."

That is the sort of presence that means even when another flyhalf has made an unanswerable case for inclusion, such as George Ford or Marcus Smith, coaches have felt they have to find a way to get Farrell into the team, and shifted him to inside centre.

Yet he has never been a natural in the 12 shirt, possessing neither the speed or evasiveness of the best centres, and, in the case of Smith, his very presence seemed to swamp the flyhalf's