Kevin Sinfield admits he did not expect to be a part of England’s coaching team this autumn.
Sinfield has promised to “over-deliver” after shelving plans to step down once the summer tour to Japan and New Zealand had been completed in favour of continuing as skills and kicking coach.
The 44-year-old rugby league great is present for Saturday’s autumn opener against the All Blacks but will miss the Tests against Australia and Japan having committed to a speaking tour in the belief he was leaving.
Following talks with Steve Borthwick, he has committed to England on an ongoing basis with his duties beyond this month’s fixtures scaled back to provide scope for his fundraising work.
“Clearly I didn’t think I’d be here. The very first conversation about me staying on started after the Six Nations,” Sinfield said.
“It took some time to work through a solution because it’s complicated when you’re trying to do some charity bits that mean a lot to you. You can’t always plan the time of year that should be or how it looks.
“I’ve really enjoyed the role with England and I love working with the guys. The group, representing your country and being around high performance – these things mean a lot to me.
Leaves are falling. Days are getting shorter. And a packed Test match schedule at @allianz_stad awaits@autumnnations time is nearly here 🙌#AllianzStadium | @allianzuknews pic.twitter.com/Luk2Mc996J
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) October 21, 2024
“My role will change but that probably won’t really come into force until the Six Nations and I’ve always been a guy who’s tried to over deliver. I intend on doing that again.
“There are some things outside of rugby that I’m really passionate about such as the charity stuff. And the the speaking stuff has been important to me as well. I’ve been trying to manage that.
“I will be in and out of camp this autumn and that will mean I will miss two of the games. But then I’ll be available for every game.”
Sinfield has raised over £8million for motor-neurone disease charities following the diagnosis of his friend and former Leeds team-mate Rob Burrow in 2019. Burrow died from the illness in June.
