Jamie George will draw inspiration from the heartwarming thought that his late mother will be watching down on him as he prepares to lead England into Saturday’s Calcutta Cup showdown with Scotland just over a week after her death.
The 33-year-old Saracens hooker found out on the same day that he was appointed captain of the Red Rose last month that his mum Jane had been diagnosed with cancer. Her situation deteriorated quickly and she died last Wednesday.
George takes some solace from the fact a woman he described as “the biggest rugby fan on earth” was able to see her boy skipper his country for two matches, the Guinness Six Nations victories over Wales and Italy.
“We’ve been going through a lot as a family for a long period,” he said, speaking with remarkable composure about his ordeal from England’s team hotel in Edinburgh city centre on Thursday evening.
“The deterioration she had was really fast. I found out on Sunday about the fact that she was terminal, and she passed away on Wednesday [last week].
“My mum was the biggest rugby fan on earth, she loved this team, loved watching me play, she never missed a game.
“The text I’ve got from her before my first game as captain is something I will treasure forever. She said it was the proudest day of her life so given what she was going through, to still be able to put a smile on her face was huge.”
George was adamant he did not want to excuse himself from England duty. He turned up on the Friday after his mum’s death to participate in an open training session at Twickenham and had no doubt in his mind that he wanted to lead his team into battle with Scotland.
George’s father, his brothers, his uncle and his cousin will be at Murrayfield for what he hopes will be a cathartic experience for the family amid the trauma.
“Taking time off is the last thing she would have wanted me to do,” said George. “It’s not what I wanted to do.
“I feel very privileged to do what I do and hopefully the boys will agree that I’ve been able to fulfil my role as captain and fulfil my role as a player in this team.
“It’s not an ideal situation to be in, but there was never any doubt in my mind that I wanted to be involved in this game.
“Wherever she is now, she will be looking down telling everyone that is there that her son is the England captain. I know for a fact that meant a huge amount to her.
“Whenever I’ve played, I’ve always wanted to make my family proud. It’s been a huge driver for me. That won’t change this weekend – it will probably be enhanced this weekend.
“It will be emotional for me coming out. It will be the first game that she won’t be there. She wasn’t able to come to the first two games to watch, which has been tough in itself, but before that she was always there, she never missed it.
“My dad, my uncle, my cousin and both brothers are coming up this weekend. It’s going to be great for them to be able to be there. It’s amazing what rugby can do in situations like this.
“When I first became captain, I spoke a lot about showing how much it means to play for England and what an amazing impact you can have on people’s lives.
“I have seen it first-hand because my mum was on her death bed talking about the England rugby team and how proud she was of me being able to do what I do.
“That’s absolutely incredible. She will be with me in some capacity on Saturday and that means a huge amount to me.”
Anderson admits speculation over England future was 'draining' ahead of retirement
James Anderson acknowledged repeated questioning over his Test future became "draining", as the England great prepares for his final international red-ball outing in July.
England's all-time leading wicket-taker Anderson announced earlier this month that he will end his storied red-ball career after the first Test against West Indies on July 10.
The 41-year-old will require nine wickets in his final Test to surpass Shane Warne's 708 wickets and move second on the all-time dismissals list.
Anderson will be greeted with a rapturous farewell at Lord's, though the Lancashire veteran says speculation over his retirement while still playing was somewhat straining.
He said on the BBC's Tailenders podcast: "There's probably been two or three moments on the field, if the opposition are 500-3, I'll be thinking, 'do I really want to still be doing this?'
"They are fleeting thoughts – nothing that has stuck with me or more than an over.
"I don't know how much of that was me and how much it was the external noise that comes with ageing. For the last six years, or even longer, it's been, 'how long can you go on for?'
"That in itself, certainly for the last couple of years, has been quite draining."
Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum will be tasked with rebuilding an England bowling attack capable of overturning Australia away in the next Ashes series.
That plan for the future seemed to force Anderson's hand into announcing his retirement decision, with speculation building the day before his eventual confirmation followed.
Though content with his decision, Anderson admitted there is still a small part of him wishing to continue.
"Some days I wake up and wish I was not retiring but then 90 per cent of the time, I'm happy with it," he added.
"Not many people in sport get the chance to retire from sport at over 40. I'm happy I've made it this far."
Headingley washout stops England and Pakistan's T20 World Cup preparation
England and Pakistan were denied valuable T20 World Cup preparation after the first game of their limited-overs series was abandoned due to rain at Headingley on Wednesday.
The umpires took little time to call off the first of a four-match T20I series as the decision was made without a ball being bowled at the ground in Leeds.
England will have to wait to assess the fitness of the returning Jofra Archer, with Pakistan also having no chance to evaluate their players as the only side to still not announce their World Cup squad yet.
Edgbaston will play host to the next meeting on Saturday, with clashes at Cardiff and The Oval to follow before the pair head off to the United States for the T20I tournament in June.
Liverpool youngster Doak makes preliminary Scotland squad for Euro 2024
Teenage Liverpool forward Ben Doak has been included in Scotland's 28-man preliminary squad for Euro 2024, with Stuart Armstrong and Che Adams also in despite fitness concerns.
Doak has never previously been called up to Scotland's senior squad, having won seven caps at under-21 level.
The 18-year-old made five appearances for Liverpool in all competitions in 2023-24, including four starts, and could now make his senior international debut when Steve Clarke's side face Gibraltar and Finland in pre-tournament friendlies next month.
Clarke must then cut two of the 28 players he has selected ahead of Scotland's trip to Germany, who they face in the opening game of the tournament on June 14.
Elsewhere, Southampton duo Armstrong and Adams have been included despite fitness concerns, with the former being sidelined by a muscle injury since late April and the latter missing both legs of their Championship play-off semi-final tie against West Brom.
Forty-one-year-old goalkeeper Craig Gordon is included after returning to the fold earlier this year, but Clarke has something of a selection dilemma at right wing-back.
With Aaron Hickey and Ryan Patterson both out injured, uncapped Bristol City man Ross McCrorie has made the cut, while Celtic's James Forrest has been discussed as an option in that role after finishing the Scottish Premiership season in fine form.
Scotland have never reached the knockout stages in four previous appearances at the Euros, only recording two wins in nine total matches at the tournament and failing to score in six of those games.
However, Clarke's side qualified in style from a difficult group headlined by Spain, their five wins representing their best ever tally in an eight-game campaign.
Full 28-man squad: Angus Gunn (Norwich City), Zander Clark (Hearts), Craig Gordon (Hearts), Liam Kelly (Motherwell), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), Kieran Tierney (Real Sociedad), Jack Hendry (Al-Ettifaq), Ryan Porteous (Watford), Liam Cooper (Leeds United), Scott McKenna (Copenhagen), Grant Hanley (Norwich City), Greg Taylor (Celtic), John Souttar (Rangers), Anthony Ralston (Celtic), Ross McCrorie (Bristol City), Callum McGregor (Celtic), Ryan Christie (Bournemouth), Billy Gilmour (Brighton and Hove Albion), John McGinn (Aston Villa), Kenny McLean (Norwich City), Scott McTominay (Manchester United), Stuart Armstrong (Southampton), Ryan Jack (Rangers), Lyndon Dykes (Queens Park Rangers), Che Adams (Southampton), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts), Ben Doak (Liverpool), James Forrest (Celtic).
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