Awkward.

Scrumhalf Ben Youngs grabbed all the headlines on Saturday evening following England’s 2nd Test loss to the Springboks in Bloemfontein.

Young walked away from Sky Sports’ Gail Davis after tensely answering one question following the series defeat. Former England boss Clive Woodward in studio described his actions as “astounding to see.”

He concluded that that England weren’t going to “make many friends” behaving in such a manner, and suggested that head coach Eddie Jones needed to act immediately. Former England centre Will Greenwood was also highly critical of the Leicester star.

“It’s very sad to see that, it’s not like Ben at all. He was just totally disrespectful of the Gail [interviewer] who is asking a pretty simple question about what had happened what went wrong.” Greenwood said.

“Players must remember at the end of it, it’s these big test matches that you can be hugely disappointed about, but you’re representing your country and there are children and families at home watching, and, if you get beaten, you have to turn up, take the flak, and you get back out on the park and try to fix those problems internally.”

“It’s a shame to see that.”

Shortly after the game Youngs apologised for his behaviour, and noted he caught up with Davis for another interview. It was heat of the moment stuff, and completely out of character for a player that is generally well-liked by the media.

But after seeing the interview, we couldn’t help but be reminded of another similar one, that is perhaps a bad omen for England Rugby. Jones’ men are in turmoil at the moment having lost five games on the trot (six including the Barbarians fixture). The last time England were in such a rut? You guessed it. Rugby World Cup 2015.

Following their loss to Wales at Twickenham, a less than pleased Mike Brown was questioned in a now infamous interview. Are Youngs’ actions a sign England are now back where they were in 2015, despite an incredible first couple of years under Jones?