Thursday 26 April 2018 09:25, UK
Dylan Hartley will have to "fight incredibly hard" to regain his England starting spot as hooker when he returns from an extended spell on the sidelines through concussion, says Will Greenwood.
The experienced hooker, was ruled out of the rest of the season - including England's summer tour to South Africa - on medical advice, after he sustained the injury during England's Six Nations defeat to Ireland last month.
Hartley, who has not featured since, issued a defiant message on social media to insist he would return to the sport next season and Greenwood described the decision by his club Northampton and England to withdraw the 32-year-old from contention as a "mature decision".
"He will have to have some incredible club form but what he has in the bank is two years under Eddie Jones"
"It means he is going to have to start next season really well," Greenwood told Sky Sports News.
"He will not own the No 2 shirt [when he returns] - someone will be the incumbent No 2 - and he will have to fight to get it back. He will have to have some incredible club form but what he has in the bank is two years under Eddie Jones.
"Eddie took over and said this England team was in tatters post-World Cup and said I need someone as my man at the front as a first point of contact with the opposition in the scrum, leading from the front and setting the tone and culture.
"He has done that for him, unbelievable successfully until the final three games. There is no doubt there is money and credit in the bank for Dylan Hartley.
"He will be involved in the Autumn Series but he will have to fight unbelievably hard to get his shirt back as will all the players who get rested."
Greenwood believes England may rest Lions hooker Jamie George, while he backed Luke Cowan-Dickie, Tom Dunn, and Jack Singleton as contenders to replace Hartley this summer while there is debate over who might take the captaincy.
Owen Farrell emerged as the overwhelming favourite from a four-man shortlist, which also included George Ford, Chris Robshaw and Maro Itoje, in a Sky Sports vote but Greenwood put forward another contender during Sky Sports' The Offload - which proved popular with viewers.
"I then mooted the point that I might rest Farrell this summer, some of the guys from the Lions - not all but those who played in virtually all the games, every Test match and who have been part of Saracens' unbelievable run across Europe and domestically," Greenwood said.
"The name that then came forward in our new poll was Joe Launchbury. Eighty per cent of people said bang on and give it to him.
"Not one person would complain if he was captain so when there is a time when Jones has come off three defeats and he has other battles to fight putting in a captain where every person in the media, every player, every ex-player will go he is a rock star, fantastic news [would go down well].
"That is where I would be going."
