Paul Gustard on two-man England shortlist to replace Felix Jones as defence coach

Steve Borthwick is on the verge of appointing a new England defence coach, with Oyonnax head coach Joe El-Abd and Paul Gustard, the Stade Français defence coach, on the final shortlist to replace Felix Jones, Telegraph Sport understands.

It is understood that the pair will be interviewed in London in the next couple of days with a decision expected by the end of the week. Both are thought to be committed to continuing with Jones’ blitz defence although it is not yet clear whether they would be able to take up the post ahead of the autumn Test matches in November. Norman Laker, the Stormers assistant coach, is not thought to be in contention.

Jones is currently working his 12-month notice period having tendered his resignation last month just eight games since joining England head coach Borthwick’s team from South Africa, where he played a key role in successive World Cup triumphs with the Springboks.

The timing of Jones’ resignation so close to the start of the new season was far from ideal in terms of recruiting a replacement but Borthwick has moved quickly to appoint a successor.

El-Abd’s friendship with Borthwick

El-Abd, the former Bristol Bears and Toulon flanker, would appear to have strong credentials, given the 44-year-old’s long-standing relationship with Borthwick.

The pair were flatmates at Bath University and Borthwick was an usher at El-Abd’s wedding. He is highly regarded for his work at the Pro D2 club, where he was appointed head coach last year having worked as an assistant coach for a number of years following his retirement in 2014. He was also defence coach at Castres when they won the French league title in 2018.

The tightness of their relationship could be key, given the shock caused by the departures of Jones and Aled Walters, the head of strength and conditioning, who also resigned to take up a job with Ireland.

El-Abd however is also thought to have head-coach offers for clubs in the Top 14, which could prove more lucrative.

Gustard and the Saracens connection

Gustard’s case for the job is also compelling, given his wealth of experience and previous strong working relationship with Borthwick.

The pair worked together as assistant coaches under former England head coach Eddie Jones when the side won a Grand Slam and a Six Nations title in 2016 and 2017 as well as completing an historic 3-0 Test series win over Australia and in Argentina.

The pair also worked closely together when Gustard was forwards coach during a seven-year stint at Saracens and Borthwick was club captain.

Gustard left his England role in 2018 to gain head coach experience at Harlequins before moving to Benetton Treviso in 2021 as defence coach. He joined Stade Français in 2022 as a defence coach.

Stade Français had the best defence in the Top 14 last year when he guided the club to second place before a narrow defeat in the semi-final against Bordeaux.

The complications of securing release from French contracts may also play a part. However, the Rugby Football Union is said to be fully committed to supporting Borthwick with his final decision.

Telegraph Sport revealed last week that Borthwick had appointed Gloucester’s head of performance Dan Tobin to his backroom staff following the departures of Walters and Tom Tombleson, who left after a restructuring of the strength and conditioning department.

A former 400 metres runner who was Leinster’s head of fitness for a decade before joining Gloucester in 2016, Tobin was described by one source as a major asset to Gloucester.