The 'incredibly ambitious' Leicester verdict on Genge replacement

Steve Borthwick has delivered a glowing verdict on the impact so far at Leicester of James Cronin, the loosehead signed during the off-season from relegated French club Biarritz to replace Ellis Genge in the front row. With England vice-captain Genge exiting for Bristol after leading the Tigers to Gallagher Premiership glory last June, there was a big hole left to fill on the Welford Road club’s roster.

However, the soon-to-be 32-year-old Cronin arrived following his single season in the Top 14 and has quickly made the No1 jersey his own. The former Ireland international, who earned the last of his three Test caps in 2016, had come up against Leicester on a number of occasions during his nine-season Munster stint.

He has since settled in swiftly to start all five of his new club’s games in this season’s Premiership, scoring tries in the outings versus Newcastle and Saracens. Now, ahead of Sunday’s round six visit to Harlequins, Borthwick has had his say on how the player signed to fill the Genge vacancy has fared. “He has done really well,” said the Leicester boss after RugbyPass asked for his thoughts on the initial Cronin impact.

“The important thing is he has got better in each of the games and you’d look at it and see a steady improvement in performance as he gets used to the guys. For the first time this season, we saw a front row of (Dan) Cole, (Julian) Montoya and Cronin together last weekend and that has the potential to build into a good combination, so he is really heading in the right direction.

“As for a character reference, he is an excellent competitor who is determined to do well and when I spoke to him I found him to be incredibly ambitious. He has got goals he is aiming for that as a coach I want to help him achieve. As a player, he has got great experience, competes hard and is very ambitious – so he can add to us.”

It was during the course of last season, following the December decision of Genge to sign for Bristol for the 2022/23 season, when Cronin first appeared on the Leicester radar and his efforts during his first few months at the club have meant that coach Borthwick isn’t pining for the absent Genge.

“I very rarely think about players who aren’t here, I just focus on the players who are here. They are the only people I can coach and influence. He [Cronin] is doing really really, I’m enjoying working with him and it is a pleasure to have him in the squad.”