England stars have big Owen Farrell question to answer this Six Nations – JASON ROBINSON

We will learn more about England in this Six Nations than we have in any championship for years for one reason – Owen Farrell isn’t there. With the World Cup 18 months away, this is the chance to see what lies behind Farrell in terms of leadership.

The England team I played in that won the World Cup in 2003 had countless leaders. Martin Johnson was the man who lifted the Webb Ellis Cup and he was a great captain but there was also Lawrence Dallaglio, Will Greenwood, Jonny Wilkinson, Neil Back, Josh Lewsey all pushing us on to become the side we ended up being.

If there was something that needed calling out there would always be someone to do so in that group.

We were blessed in that regard. Jonny, Lawrence, Phil Vickery, Matt Dawson, myself – we all captained England at some point.

With the current England side, with no Farrell, there are a lot of questions to be answered in that department.

It’s bizarre how Farrell has become such a Marmite figure. People love him or hate him. I’m a fan but a lot of others aren’t

While Farrell hasn’t been at his best as a rugby player over the past couple of years he has still brought a lot to that England squad.

Sometimes you only realise what you’ve got when it’s not there.

I worked with the England squad in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup so I was able to get under the skin of the operation.

The influence Farrell has is huge. Most of the benefits of leadership don’t come when the cameras are on, they come behind the scenes day to day, driving the standards in training and in team meetings. Farrell does that.

I played with his dad Andy at Wigan and he is a chip off the old block. Andy always seemed a step ahead with the way he thought about the game, the way he drove things, just his general obsessiveness about rugby and the detail that shapes it. Owen is the same.

If there’s one voice in the England set-up you hear telling people what they are doing isn’t good enough or that they need to work harder it is his.

To some his style might be confrontational and in your face but those jabs are what you need as a player. Every successful side has to have a personality like that.

Without him and no Courtney Lawes, who captained the side against the Springboks in the autumn, it is going to need others to fill the void.

There are potential leaders in the squad. Tom Curry is one, Maro Itoje is another. Itoje has often been talked about as a future England captain. He skippered the under-20s to the World Cup and he has been a leader in the side for some time in the way he plays. Can he step forward?

There are players in there who captain their clubs – Charlie Ewels at Bath and Ellis Genge who has done an outstanding job in his first season leading Leicester. He might be a key figure in Farrell’s absence.

The point is that somebody has to stand up. Whether anyone does so or not could decide England’s campaign.

Jason Robinson is an ambassador for SOGO Mobility – ultra-flexible, sustainable leasing – www.sogomonility.co.uk