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Steve Borthwick's position as England captain may still be open to question but he received a welcome boost from his Saracens team-mates ahead of their clash against Worcester.
After defeats by Australia and New Zealand and a scrappy win over Argentina, Borthwick's leadership is still being highlighted as a weakness in the England set-up despite the full support of team manager Martin Johnson, who will set out his vision for the rest of the season at Twickenham today.
Rob Andrew, the Rugby Football Union's elite rugby director, will also be in attendance to defend the coaching set-up he thinks is worth keeping.
Johnson's belief in Borthwick is unshakeable and is shared by Brendan Venter, the Sarries director of rugby, who was delighted to hear Borthwick wanted to play in tomorrow night's Guinness Premiership match at the Sixways after returning from international duty.
Sarries are chasing a ninth successive league win to cement their position at the top of the table and Venter said: "Steve is back at the club and the most important thing has been the reaction of the other players to what he has achieved.
"They gave him a huge cheer when he walked into the dressing room and that says it all. They love him at this club."
Meanwhile, Leicester Tigers head coach Richard Cockerill has been suspended for four weeks after pleading guilty to two offences of abusing match officials during the LV= Cup match against Newport Gwent Dragons this month.
