If Steve Borthwick’s side beat Wasps on Sunday for a 16th straight win they would equal Graham Willars’ 1983-84 team
Comparing different sides from two wildly different eras, nearly 40 years apart and straddling the shift from amateurism to professionalism, is never easy. Yet Ian Smith, the captain of Leicester Tigers for the 1983-84 season that began with 16 straight wins – a record Steve Borthwick’s side will hope to match on Sunday – sums it up well.
“When we played we wanted to win every game,” says Smith, who made 331 appearances for Leicester. “When they play now they have to win every game because if they don’t it’s P45.”