Monday 31 October 2016 16:33, UK
Alex Goode spoke to Sky Sports about the influence Eddie Jones had on him at Saracens, and the current England culture.
Out of every England camp there is one common theme from Eddie Jones's conversations with the media; improvement.
Jones has maintained the honest outlook with which he started his time in charge, speaking frankly on England's weaknesses in public while demanding that his players work hard to fix them.
It's an attitude that full-back Goode remembers well from the Australian's coaching days at Saracens. Now a Premiership and Champions Cup title holder with the team, Goode remembers a time when he was trying to break into the starting side early in his career.
"I was a very young guy at the time and he pushed me incredibly hard to get better," Goode told Sky Sports. "I spent a lot of hours practicing and training.
"In the first couple of months, I didn't get picked and I was a bit disappointed, given all the training I was putting in.
"Obviously it's my dream to start and to play, I love to represent my country. Having done it before it's an absolute joy and something I'd like to do again and again."
"I probably didn't grasp it at the time, but later on I realised that the reason he was pushing so hard, the reason I did everything so religiously and kept practicing my kicking and my passing, was because when I got my chance, I'd never let it go again.
"That was the key really, you get your chance and you have all the background skills and everything in place so that you can be the best player possible and you wouldn't lose your spot.
"He had a big impact on me in that sense."
Now an established player within the national set-up, and last season named Premiership Player of the Year, Goode faces a challenge similar to those early days at Saracens. With Harlequins' Mike Brown currently the first-choice No 15 for an unbeaten England side under Jones, Goode will have to keep working hard to usurp his team-mate, and his motivation is just as strong as it was at the start of his career.
"Obviously it's my dream to start and to play, I love to represent my country," Goode added. "Having done it before, it's an absolute joy and something I'd like to do again and again."
Despite Jones's strong start as coach of the national side, Goode says the basic philosophy of simply "controlling the controllables" has not waned in the 56-year-old.
"We've always set out to try and get better, and to keep working hard," Goode added. "We know there is a lot of work to be done, we've set our stall out to keep improving.
"The boys did exceptionally well in the Six Nations and in June over in Australia and we want to build on that."
Goode believes concise and forthright feedback from Jones is the vital ingredient in England's upward curve in form.
"Eddie makes it very clear to the players," Goode added. "Everyone knows their roles, what they need to do and how they need to go about it.
"It makes it pretty simple for rugby players. We are pretty simple at times so it's a good way of doing it!
"Honesty is something that everyone responds to, whether you are picked or not picked. If someone is honest with you and tells you why, you may not agree with it, but at least it tells you exactly what they think and you can go away and get better.
"I think that's the key, Eddie wants to drive us hard and get us to play better. That's the culture he wants to build."
With a clean sweep in the Six Nations and a series whitewash of the Wallabies, England rugby appears in good health. Conversely, their next opponents are on a low ebb; after nearly losing a home series to Ireland, the Springboks limped to third place in the Rugby Championship, notching just two wins out of six.
Despite the stuttering fortune of Twickenham's upcoming visitors, Goode refuses to write them off and points to South Africa's current unbeaten run against England which stretches to almost a decade.
"It's a huge test for us," Goode said. "They're coming off the back of the Rugby Championship and have had a long time together so it will be a tough test for us and we will have to hit the ground running."
"They like nothing better than beating the English, as the results have shown over the last ten years. We have to have a huge amount of respect for them, and make sure we do our analysis and are very prepared for what they are going to bring."
As proof of England's uncomplicated thought processes, Goode would not be drawn on another of their November opponents, the Pumas.
"We haven't looked at them yet, we're focusing on South Africa," Goode said. "That's a big game first up.
"We want to make sure we come into the camp and prepare solely for that game, because if we take our eye off the ball for one minute we will get a beating."
Alex Goode was speaking on behalf of Mitsubishi Motors, Official Performance Partner of England Rugby. Mitsubishi Motors is using Intelligent Motion to challenge the team ahead of the Old Mutual Wealth Series through innovative Performance Tests.
