Joe Ford, 29, the player-coach at Yorkshire Carnegie and elder brother of George, 26, England’s fly-half
George was always 100% dedicated to everything he did, everything was done early and always to the best of his ability, whether that be homework, cleaning his boots – from the age of eight! – or a gym session late at night in Greenfield.
People always asked why he was so good and, yes he had the talent and ability, but it was his mind that set him apart from everyone, and why he has gone on to achieve what he has. He is very focused and he likes things to be clean! He even has a hoover in his car, at the first sign of mud he gets it out and it’s gone. He’s got a dog but it’s the most perfect dog you will ever see!
We weren’t really competitive, we’ve just always really got on, but being the older brother, when I started out playing rugby league, he came along – a four-year-old playing under sevens. Playing age group rugby league he always played the age above himself, simply because he needed a challenge. When he played against Wigan St Pats, who are renowned for always having the best teams, he still scored seven tries playing the age above!
I sent him a message straight after the All Blacks game on the family WhatsApp group. I just said what an unbelievable achievement to do what you have done. He responded straight after the match with: “Thank you, we have given ourselves an opportunity, that is all.” I found that incredible after such a big win against the world’s best team; it’s probably testament to the mindset Eddie and the coaching group have gotten these players into.
The last thing I would say to G before the game would be … Be Yourself, Back Yourself, Fuck It, something we spoke a lot about together last year at Leicester and I’m sure it will be written on his hand somewhere for the final.
Tom Youngs, 32, Leicester Tigers’ hooker and captain and elder brother of Ben, 30, the England scrum-half
Ben was pretty cheeky when he was growing up. He didn’t enjoy the farm so he left me to do most of that and spent most of his time kicking a rugby ball around in the garden with our cousin, Monty, both of them wearing rugby tops and pretending to kick the winning goal.
But seriously, I am so so proud of what he has done. He was always destined to be an England player. He wasn’t the biggest but it was his speed, he would score nine tries in a match. He was always one step in front of everyone and he could read the game so well. He was always the standout player, scoring a miracle try of some sort!
There has been a lot of FaceTiming and texts, we’ve spoken two to three times a week while he’s been in Japan. We talk about everything, rugby chat, family chat, but, no, there’s been no talk about tractors! Bendoesn’t even know what we do on the farm at this time of year! Because we do the same job, we’re professional rugby players, and internationals, I know what he’s going through. He can talk to me about things that are going on that he can’t with other people.
Speaking to him the other day, the players just really want to finish the job. I was telling him to just enjoy the week, enjoy the occasion, it’s going to go in a flash and you might never experience this again. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Dad is out there but mum doesn’t really like watching the games live so she is looking after Ben’s kids so his wife, Charlotte, can go to Japan. I’m going to watch it in the morning before our game, but I’ve got to keep a lid on the emotions because otherwise I’ll be exhausted and we need a win too.
If I was there I would want to tell him how amazingly proud the whole family are of him. Everything that he has achieved is more than we could ever have imagined already. Think of all the sacrifices you have made over the past four years for this and enjoy this moment. It’s very, very special – take it all in. I can’t tell you how much I will celebrate if we both win on Saturday.
Marcus Watson, 28, Wasps wing, Olympic silver medallist and elder brother of Anthony, 25, England’s right wing
Well, the brotherly competition worked out pretty well for Anthony! I guess we were both pretty competitive – all three of us – because we’ve got the youngest one, Callum, as well. Anthony always used to be that kid who when he would lose he would cry no matter what. I remember my dad would beat him at races and stuff when we were young and he would cry so much. Now it comes out in a different way. You don’t see many tears but he still really hates losing at anything, literally anything.
When I was in England Under-18s or 20s and he was in Under-16s you always picture what things will be like in the future and to be honest, I thought we would play together for England! When I got into the full-time academy the coaches started to give me a bit of banter that Anthony was coming up and going to be better than me. I thought, well, it’s just banter, but he has ended up doing pretty well.
A massive thanks to Dai and @WaspsRugby for letting me go. Means a lot to me and my family. @callumwatson9 and I are buzzing to be on our way to 🇯🇵 to join mum and dad. This pic was the last time we were all away together #sisqo #simonphoenix 😂 pic.twitter.com/wNh2VVXcdg
— Marcus Watson (@MarcusWatson11) October 31, 2019
We have both done OK but despite the silver medal if he wins the World Cup he’s got bragging rights! When I was about 17 or 18 I knew Anthony was going to be a similar sort of player to me and then you look at his frame and he’s a lot bigger than me and it was then I realised, he’s going to be a pretty serious rugby player.
I’ve FaceTimed him earlier this week and he texted me on Tuesday saying, “we’ve got to try to get you to Japan”. I messaged him back, saying: “The Wasps team’s already been announced for this weekend, so I think we’re going to struggle.” I said we should start a tweet #getmarcustojapan. And then it happened and thanks to the club I’m here!
We’re both quite relaxed, but I know that he’s as switched on as you can get.
I’ve been thinking about what I will hopefully say to him when they win. But beforehand? He will understand the magnitude of the game so for me it would be more about reminding him about the reason he started playing the game in the first place, because he enjoyed it. Try your best to enjoy the situation. Don’t let it pass you by because these opportunities don’t come around too often.
Tom Cowan-Dickie 28, Cornish Pirates hooker and elder brother of Luke, 26, England’s replacement hooker
All my life everyone wants to talk about Luke! We were pretty normal as brothers I think, we fought a bit, argued but we would always be there for each other.
We must be pretty similar and that’s why we’ve ended up moving into the same positions on the pitch, from back-row to loosehead and then to hooker but no, he didn’t take my position. We were moved there by different people over the years. Some might say we’re pretty similar as people too, although I like to think I’m the nicer one … some might disagree!
We’ve both done a few trips out with Dad [Adam, a deep-sea fisherman] but, to answer the question, we definitely didn’t learn anything from handling slippery fish that was any use when it comes to throwing the ball into the lineout in the wet!
How would I describe him in a few words? Confident, a winner, good at everything he does, multi-talented at sports. He was very annoying! When he was playing under-16 and under-18 level, some of the things that he could do for a front-row forward, the skills that he had, I knew then the kid could be special as a rugby player.
We play a lot of Xbox and we’ve been chatting on that while he’s been in Japan. He’s really good at that too. At one point he was No 1 in the world on Call of Duty, search and destroy. Everything he picks up, he does well at.
We’re playing on Friday night in Nottingham so I’ll be watching the match in the hotel on Saturday morning. If I was there, I would just tell him: do what you do. Enjoy it, don’t worry about it – at the end of the day rugby is rugby whatever happens. Do what you can and we will proud of you all the way.
Ben Curry, 21, Sale flanker and by 90 minutes the elder of identical twin brother Tom, the England blindside flanker
We were pretty similar when we were growing up – that’s why we clashed so many times and had so many arguments. We were very competitive. Mind, playing him on PlayStation was not really a competition – he’s rubbish at it. We’re like an old married couple, we don’t say too much to each other – we’ve just lived together all our lives and you kind of get bored with each other.
I knew he was good when he won his first England cap! Anyone who grows up playing rugby wants to play for England, he’s done very well. And through his own doing and his hard work he has been given that chance. I am very proud of him.
As a family we support each other in whatever we do, whether its an under-15 final or this, which happens to be one of the biggest stages in sport. We are on two separate journeys, we are two separate people, we are not always going to be in the same place at the same time – although I’m very grateful to the club for sending me out to Japan.
What would I say to him before the final? Er, win? Nothing needs to be said. He knows what he needs to do and he’ll get told what he needs to do so there’s nothing I can say which will change anything. He’s got to the final without my messages so I don’t think he needs anything from me to succeed! It is a World Cup, and it does mean a lot, but at the end of the day there’s a lot more to life than a rugby game.
Will Joseph, 17, London Irish academy and England U18 outside centre, on his older brother Jonathan, 28, England’s centre among the replacements
Jonathan was easygoing, very relaxed and a fun big brother. Although he was very focused on his rugby, he always found time for family. I remember hours spent with him messing around with a rugby ball in the garden and l loved going to watch my big brother play when he started out with London Irish.
His achievements have made me realise anything is possible. I never really thought about a moment when I knew he was really good; he was just my big brother. Playing rugby at a high level was simply Jonathan’s job.
Like high-performing professionals in sport or any other career, he is dedicated and works hard to achieve results. We’re a close family and we always stay in touch, and have talked and texted about the usual things brothers chat about while he’s been in Japan.
If I was there with him on Saturday, I would say: “This is the moment. Run onto the pitch and give it all you’ve got. Your family believe in you and are always proud of you. And when you and the team lift the World Cup, the whole country will be proud of you too!”
