With a record of five wins in 12 games, Jamie George will not go down as one of England’s great captains. Few men in the professional era, however, have skippered England with more pride or sacrificed more to lead their country.

England hooker Jamie George had no idea he would be stripped of the captaincy for his country until the day before Steve Borthwick named his Six Nations squad. George captained England in all 12 of their Test matches last year but will be replaced as skipper by his Saracens team-mate Maro Itoje during the Six Nations.

But Borthwick has opted to replace George with Saracens team-mate Itoje amid mounting speculation over the hooker’s place in England’s starting XV for next month’s Six Natio