England head coach Stuart Lancaster has revealed he is contemplating adding an extra man to his three-man coaching team which proved successful in this year’s RBS 6 Nations.
Lancaster was backed by Graham Rowntree and Andy Farrell in the championship before Farrell committed his future to Saracens and London Irish’s Mike Catt came in on an interim basis for the South Africa summer tour.
But with Farrell back on the market following his resignation from the first-team coach post at Saracens, the former England centre could come back into the fold along with Catt turning his position into a full-time role.
And Lancaster admitted having a four-man coaching team could alleviate some of the pressure as his young side continue to develop before next year’s Six Nations.
“Having three members [Lancaster, Catt and Graham Rowntree] has worked well but I wouldn’t discount a fourth person coming in to give me a bit of breathing space,” he said.
“I will do what is best for the England team, certainly.”
England hope to continue their progress against Fiji, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand in the four November Autumn internationals – and Lancaster lauded the strength of the young England squad.
“To have 10, 12 and 13 [Owen Farrell, Manu Tuilagi and Jonathan Joseph] all 21 years old and younger was great,” he said.
“The autumn internationals are going to be fantastic and to have those four games at Twickenham is great.
“The players will have had a decent rest and those who are injured will be back on their feet. It is a great position to be in from a coaching point of view.”
