Richard Hill: It is my job to spot England’s new talent – but they don’t always know who I am
The TelegraphIn fairness to Cunningham-South, he was barely eight months old when Martin Johnson lifted the Webb Ellis Cup in Sydney. When engaging with any player, he makes sure that his messages are aligned with those of coaches, from that individual’s club, from England Under-20s or within Borthwick’s set-up, to minimise confusion: “I wouldn’t dream of going through their games and making some profound statement about how they defended or attacked without cross-checking.” ‘If players don’t improve the game moves on’ Hill believes that England staff have a responsibility to “make sure it is not a closed shop” for aspiring internationals plugging away in the Premiership. “I can’t say that I haven’t spoken about a certain player that is a back-rower that I’ve said is a centre… but I’ve been outvoted about 99 to one,” he smiles. Tommy Reffell and Aaron Wainwright were both excellent against Scotland, despite eventual defeat for Warren Gatland’s men, and will need to be contained by England in different ways. “It’s not uncommon for a player to look outstanding for a couple of games and then the opposition go: ‘I like the look of him.
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