Sir Clive Woodward’s last 5 England debutants: Where are they now?
Rugby NewsWednesday, 15 April 2020 at 12:03
Okay
Spearheading England to Rugby World Cup triumph in 2003, head coach Sir Clive Woodward struggled in the months that followed.
His last tour as England coach came in the summer of 2004, with an ill-fated trip to New Zealand and Australia.
England were beaten by New Zealand in two tests, without scoring a single try, going down 36–3 in the first and 36–12 in the second. The team then went to Australia, where they were beaten 51–15.
Have a look at the last 5 Woodward debutants with England and how they faired.
1. Tim Payne
- Position: Prop
- Total caps: 22
- Debut: v Australia at Brisbane, 2004
Made his debut in Woodward's final game as head coach, with England being comprehensively beat 55-15 by the Wallabies. He'd go onto feature sparingly over the next six years, winning 22 caps in total.
He was called into the squad for the 2009 British and Irish Lions Tour, but did not feature in a Test match.
Verdict
: Not badWhere is he now? He's now the strength and conditioning coach at Newcastle Falcons
2. Andy Titterrell
- Position: Hooker
- Total caps: 5
- Debut: v New Zealand at Auckland, 2004
He was considered an outside chance for Woodward's 2003 Rugby World Cup squad but was ultimately left out. A year later, the forward took part in the 2004 senior Summer tour, earning his first senior cap, coming off the bench against the All Blacks in Auckland.
Despite winning just five caps, in 2005 Titterrell was a surprise selection for the British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand ahead of more experienced players.
Verdict: Wasted talent
Where is he now? He's now the forwards coach at Wasps
3. Michael Lipman
- Position: Flanker
- Total caps: 10
- Debut: v New Zealand at Auckland, 2004
Lipman was born in London and raised in Australia, representing the New South Wales Waratahs at youth and 'B' levels before agreeing a switch to play for Bristol in the Premiership.
After a successful introduction to English rugby he moved to Bristol's West Country rivals Bath in 2003. His form at the club led to a call up for England's 2004 summer tour, and he made his international debut in a loss to New Zealand in Auckland.
Injuries curtailed his progress at international level.
Where is he now? He's living in Melbourne
4. Matt Stevens
- Position: Prop
- Total caps: 39
- Debut: v New Zealand at Dunedin, 2004
The powerhouse appeared at both the 2007 and 2011 World Cups before retiring from international rugby in 2012. With a young family to look after, the imperious scrummager felt he would not be able to commit through to the 2015 World Cup. A consistent performer for England throughout some tough periods.
Verdit: Success
Where are they now? Since retiring from rugby he's become a hotelier
5. Chris Jones
- Position: Flanker
- Total caps: 12
- Debut: v Italy at Rome, 2004
He was called up to the senior team by then head coach Clive Woodward from the start of the Six Nations. He came off the bench against Italy for his debut cap and promptly scored a try. He never really became a regular.
Verdict:
TRENDING
LATEST NEWS
LATEST COMMENTS
- Jordie Barrett over Damian de Allende is far from being correct. The hype around Dupont is also overreaching, he's probably 4th in the world and has been since the 2023 WC. He also avoids certain matchups which is strange. The rest of the list is pretty good apart from minor subjective biases.JasonMarlow16-09-2026
Loading
