Tom Curry was handed the England captaincy after Owen Farrell was ruled out of the 2022 Guinness Six Nations.
The Sale Sharks flanker had been a standout for England under the tenure of Eddie Jones after making his debut in 2017.
Curry was the youngest forward to have appeared for England since 1912, and certainly proved that he had the talent to thrive at international level, blossoming during the 2019 Six Nations and in their surge to the World Cup final that same year.
He was named skipper ahead of Courtney Lawes and Maro Itoje, who also had strong claims for the captaincy.
Unfortunately for Curry he was unable to revive the fortunes of England in the Six Nations, and injury prevented him from taking the field against France for the final match of the term.
England were backed as 13/5 underdogs in the Six Nations odds without the Sale flanker in the line-up, although he was not operating at the peak of his powers before his injury.
Curry has been the victim of his own success in a lot of ways.
At the age of 23, he has been entrusted with the captaincy and may even take on the role on a permanent basis should Farrell not be able to secure a return to the starting XV before the World Cup.
Players of his age have been trusted with captaincy in the past.
Farrell was relatively young when he got the nod to replace Dylan Hartley, while Wales made the move to place the captaincy into the hands of Sam Warburton when was only 23 as well, and after two years of international rugby.
"Why was Luke Cowan-Dickie defending out on the wing?" Because the best space after a regathered kick can often be found… with another kick. pic.twitter.com/srUOoemTpM
— Charlie Morgan (@CharlieFelix) February 8, 2022
Curry seemed to struggle with the responsibility of leading the team on the field against Scotland as England took time to assert themselves into the contest.
Once they did, a crucial mistake from Luke Cowan-Dickie presented Gregor Townsend’s men with a penalty try and an extra man in the closing minutes to secure the Calcutta Cup.
Although England bounced back with a fine performance against Italy in Rome, they weren’t firing on all cylinders in a narrow win over Wales.
Red card!
— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) March 12, 2022
Game-changing moment inside two minutes as Charlie Ewels is sent off for foul play after an upright hit on James Ryan#ITVRugby pic.twitter.com/qw4eY9XdeQ
Charlie Ewels’ dismissal against Ireland effectively ended the game in the second minute, despite a spirited outing from the England forwards.
Curry took a step forward in that contest both in terms of leadership and the standard of his game, regaining his peak form.
However, his injury has come at the wrong time for Jones, who was forced to hand over the captaincy to Lawes.
Curry has also been the victim of his versatility.
Jones has shunted him around the back row, which appeared to unsettle the flanker as he failed to find a rhythm to his game.
For a player that is still finding his way at the top of the sport, the England coach has put a lot on his plate and judging by the Six Nations campaign it has backfired.
As a result, England have a lot of thinking ahead of them for the 2023 World Cup regarding the captaincy of the side.
