It was a busy summer for England’s rugby players: the men’s senior team, the seconds (known as The Saxons), the under-20s and Team GB’s Rugby Sevens stars were in action across four continents. And, having become the first host nation ever to crash out of a World Cup at the Group Stage just under one year ago, English Rugby has bounced back with a vengeance.

There was a 3-0 series win for Eddie Jones’ men in Australia, a 2-0 series win for The Saxons in South Africa, a World Championship title for the under-20s, and an Olympic Silver medal for the GB Sevens team (7/12 of whom were English). All these successes suggest that the sport is in a good place: they certainly put in a better performance than their footballing counterparts!

Australia Series Whitewash: 3-0 win

Having only ever won two tests in Australia prior to 11th June 2016, the scale of this achievement cannot be underestimated. Yes, Australia were not quite the team that put England to the sword last October en route to the World Cup final, but to win three tests in a row in Australia is monumental.

The hosts were missing key players such as Adam Ashley-Cooper, Kurtley Beale, Matt Giteau, Will Genia and Quade Cooper, but given the way that the team has performed in the Southern Hemisphere’s Rugby Championship so far – with many of these players available – it is arguable that they would have made little difference. Equally, the true strength of a rugby nation rests heavily on its depth of talent: just look at the All Blacks now. Despite having lost six of their best players after last year’s World Cup (legends Richie McCaw and Dan Carter among them), they still appear to be as strong as ever. Australia were simply second best to an England team packed with potential.

Yet, we should not forget how it all began: 16 minutes into the first test, England were 10-0 down and hanging on for dear life. Australia had missed two conversions and had a try disallowed for crossing in midfield soon after – England were being carved to pieces. It was an inspired move from Jones when, after 29 minutes, he replaced centre Luther Burrell with George Ford (the smallest man on the pitch), reverting to the line-up which won the Six Nations. England went on to win the game 39-29, with tries coming from Jonathan Joseph, Marland Yarde, and Jack Nowell (all converted by Owen Farrell), Farrell kicking six penalties, and flanker James Haskell putting in a man-of-the-match performance.

Not many coaches out there would make a tactical substitution less than 30 minutes into a game. But Jones has the bravery and the nous to do just that – in the third test, he did it again: England were being overrun at the breakdown, so new flanker Teimana Harrison was subbed for Courtney Lawes, just 32 minutes into his second cap.

Those two decisions speak volumes about Jones’s character and show just why the RFU brought him in. His no-nonsense approach to the game is in clear contrast to that of his predecessor, Stuart Lancaster… and indeed to the England football management – there is no doubt Marcus Rashford would not have been left on the bench until the 86th minute against Iceland if Jones had been in charge.

Jones has brought the best out of players – Chris Robshaw and Haskell have been playing like men possessed – and his appointment of Dylan Hartley as captain has proved incredibly shrewd. And his team have shown that they can win in different ways, having come from behind to win the first test, defended for their lives in the second (23-7), before finding their attacking game in a thrilling finale to win 44-40. This will be invaluable in the coming seasons.

Jones has also spoken about the importance of winning three consecutive tests, equating them to the quarters, semis and final of a World Cup. This attitude is typical of the man and is exactly what England needed. The way that he has turned English rugby around, from World Cup failures to ‘Aussie-beaters’ in a matter of months and with largely the same squad, is something quite remarkable.

There are certainly things to work on, though. Shipping 40 points against the Wallabies will have frustrated Jones and his coaching team – in fact, no England team has ever conceded 40 points and still won – and Hartley was keen to point out that they had not played the “perfect game” yet. Questions also remain over their ideal 10-12 partnership, and there were times in the series when their attacking game failed to click. Similarly, Steve Borthwick will be hoping to eradicate some inconsistencies at both scrum and line-out, though England’s set pieces were generally dominant. A tougher test awaits in the shape of New Zealand, who remain a cut above the rest of the world, but these are exciting times for England fans.

The Saxons – England’s strength in depth: 2-0 win

The England Saxons played two exciting tests against South Africa’s A Team, winning the first test quite comfortably despite a late fightback from the hosts (32-24), while dramatically coming back from 26-8 down to win the second test 29-26, with a try from Christian Wade five minutes from time securing the victory.  

There were plenty of stand-out performers, with Matt Kvesic (Gloucester), Dave Attwood (Bath), and Tommy Taylor (Wasps) impressing up front, whilst Dan Robson, Danny Cipriani, Christian Wade (all Wasps), Nick Tompkins (Saracens) and Semesa Rokoduguni (Bath) shone in the backs. The sheer amount of talent packed into the England second team is remarkable: elsewhere in world rugby, many of these players would hope to be pulling on the jersey for their country’s first team.

Under-20s – sharp-looking prospects

On the same day as the England senior team were defeating Australia in the final test, the England under-20s were taking apart Ireland to win their third World Championship in four years. The performances of stand-out players Will Evans (flanker) and Joe Marchant (centre) merited call-ups to the senior England men’s team training squad, while fly-half and captain Harry Mallinder started for Northampton this weekend. With prospects of this level of quality just waiting to be harnessed, there is undoubtedly a promising and bright future for English rugby.