The House of Lancaster

The House of Lancaster

How England Rugby was Reinvented

Summary

Acclaimed world champions in 2003, the England rugby union team came home from the World Cup in New Zealand eight years later to the sound of silence. Their rugby was uninspiring and their reputation in tatters. Stuart Lancaster - former burger-flipper, PE teacher and the novice Saxons coach - was tasked with turning a failing team around.

The transformation was astounding. Now Lancaster's side has the work ethic, humility and resolve to compare with that World Cup-winning team. Much of this is down to their coach, but with so little international experience, how did he bring about this renewal?

Part biography, part examination of leadership, The House of Lancaster pulls apart the England rugby machine and looks at how it has been put together. Filled with exclusive interviews from the leading protagonists, players and coaches, as well as containing unprecedented access to Lancaster's methods, The House of Lancaster shows how the vision, personality and leaderships skills of one driven man can turn a team into genuine world-beaters.

With a foreword from Sir Ian McGeechan OBE

Reviews

  • A fascinating behind-the-scenes insight into the transformation Stuart Lancaster has effected
    Sir Ian McGeechan OBE

About the author

Neil Squires

Neil Squires is the Rugby Union Correspondent for the Daily Express. His relationship with Stuart Lancaster goes back almost twenty years, having covered the England coach's playing career at Leeds for the Yorkshire Post. No journalist is closer to him or better qualified to chronicle his rise and examine his motivations and his methods.
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