“I have made up my mind” - Jack Willis' England career is over after World Cup

The flanker made the move to Toulouse when his former club Wasps faced financial troubles, and with his present contract nearing its end, he must decide where to continue his rugby career next season.

“I think Steve Borthwick coming out and supporting that just shows that there are lots of people behind the scenes that are working to try to find the right solution for English rugby moving forwards,” Willis told the Evening Standard Rugby Podcast.

“I think there are lots of avenues to explore, but the positive thing for me is that it seems that hopefully that’s on the table and at least being discussed, and we’ll see.”

He added: “I have made up my mind; I need to get the last couple of things finalised over the next couple of weeks, and make sure that all my family are on board,.

“Wherever we do end up you want to make sure you’ve considered every factor possible. There’s still a little bit of thinking to do, but we’re nearly there. I’ve absolutely loved my time here, and Toulouse have been so welcoming.”

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According to Willis, he thinks that the eligibility rules of England will undergo a modification, and this alteration will not be limited to him alone.

“You look at the salary cap [in the Premiership], where it’s heading, where it has been heading, how tight it is and how many players have been squeezed out of jobs. You then look at Wasps and Worcester; they didn’t have financially stable models,” 

Willis was recently ranked as England's bet player during the Telegraph's countdown of the 100 best players in the world.

Presented below is the comprehensive list, starting from the 100th spot and culminating at the first position.

100. Pierre Schoeman (Scotland)

99. Tommaso Menoncello (Italy)

98. Franco Mostert (South Africa)

97. Paul Alo-Emile (Samoa)

96. Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland)

95 Juan Martín González (Argentina)

94. Jasper Wiese (South Africa)

93. Damian Willemse (South Africa)

92. Mark Telea (New Zealand)

91. Faf de Klerk (South Africa)

90. Handré Pollard (South Africa)

89. James Lowe (Ireland)

88. Jamie Ritchie (Scotland)

87. Paul Willemse (France)

86. Shannon Frizell (New Zealand)

85. Freddie Steward (England)

They wrote: "The best England player to emerge in this four-year cycle, without question. Steward has come a long way from having to ditch a shift in Costa to turn out for Leicester in the Premiership Rugby Cup, to becoming England’s specialist diffuser under the high ball at full-back while hoovering up a number of awards. The potential is enormous, and he should thrive at his first World Cup."

84. Thibaud Flament (France)

83. Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland)

82. Matthieu Jalibert (France)

81.. Jac Morgan (Wales)

80 Jack Conan (Ireland)

79. Danilo Fischetti (Italy)

78. Ange Capuozzo (Italy)

77. Sam Whitelock (New Zealand)

76. Emiliano Boffelli (Argentina)

75. Darcy Graham (Scotland)

74. Louis Rees-Zammit (Wales)

73. Damian McKenzie (New Zealand)

72. Ellis Genge (England)

They wrote: "England have over-relied on his excellent ball-carrying in recent years – having him return kicks against France in 2022 – and his scrummaging, largely very good, can be first-class. Not forgetting his leadership abilities either, held in high regard by this England group as vice-captain."

71. Paolo Garbisi (Italy)

70. Bundee Aki (Ireland)

69. Uini Atonio (France)

68. Mateo Carreras (Argentina)

67. Andrew Porter (Ireland)

66. Peter O’Mahony (Ireland)

65. Ethan de Groot (New Zealand)

64 Anthony Jelonch (France)

63. Owen Farrell (England)

They wrote: "Even if you are someone who has never been fully convinced, it is difficult to argue with Farrell’s placing given the season he has just had – arguably his greatest ever on an individual level, showing an array of fly-half skills that fans might not have realised he possessed. Undeniably, his latest ban has put England in a very awkward spot."

62. Theo McFarland (Samoa)

61. Samisoni Tauke’iaho (New Zealand)

60. Waisea Nayacalevu (Fiji)

59. UJ Seuteni (Samoa)

58. Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland)

57. Kurt-Lee Arendse (South Africa)

56. Beauden Barrett (New Zealand)

55. Maro Itoje (England)

They wrote: "One of the game’s great competitors. Detractors might proffer that Itoje’s strengths have been figured out and neutralised by opponents, but he merits a place for his consistency here if nothing else. A born winner, his performances never drop below eight out of ten. In the court of public opinion, he is arguably a victim of his own early-career success."

54. Brodie Retallick (New Zealand)

53. Siya Kolisi (South Africa)

52. Codie Taylor (New Zealand)

51. Lu khanyo Am (South Africa)

50. Pieter-Steph du Toit (South Africa)

49. Davit Niniashvili (Georgia)

48. Mack Hansen (Ireland)

47. Taniela Tupou (Australia)

46. Rieko Ioane (New Zealand)

45. Robbie Henshaw (Ireland)

44. Marika Koroibete (Australia)

43. Charles Ollivon (France)

42. Cyril Baille (France)

41. Gabin Villière (France)

40. Jordie Barrett (New Zealand)

39. Richie Mo’unga (New Zealand)

38. Cheslin Kolbe (South Africa)

37. Emmanuel Meafou (Uncapped)

36. Finn Russell (Scotland)

35. Tadhg Furlong (Ireland)

34. Josua Tuisova (Fiji)

33. Tawera Kerr-Barlow (New Zealand)

32. Jack Willis (England)

They Wrote: "A lurching rollercoaster of a year has brought Willis to this juncture, where he is the highest-ranked England player on our list. That does not guarantee him a spot in Steve Borthwick’s starting side, of course. Just last autumn, following the demise of Wasps, Willis was battling for a spot in the 23. Moving to Toulouse, where he was integral to a title run, looks to have sharpened his link play to complement elite jackalling skills."

31. Aaron Smith (New Zealand)

30. Scott Barrett (New Zealand)

29. Marcos Kremer (Argentina)

28. Willie le Roux (South Africa)

27. Romain Ntamack (France)

26. Josh van der Flier (Ireland)

25. Frans Malherbe (South Africa)

24. Pablo Matera (Argentina)

23. Julián Montoya (Argentina)

22. Gaël Fickou (France)

21. Garry Ringrose (Ireland)

20. Will Jordan (New Zealand)

19. Steven Kitshoff (South Africa)

18. Malcolm Marx (South Africa)

17. Samu Kerevi (Australia)

16. Thomas Ramos (France)

15. Levani Botia (Fiji)

14. Johnny Sexton (Ireland)

13. Julien Marchand (France)

12. James Ryan (Ireland)

11. Dan Sheehan (Ireland)

10. Hugo Keenan (Ireland)

9. Damian Penaud (France)

8. Jonathan Danty (France)

7. Tadhg Beirne (Ireland)

6. Will Skelton (Australia)

5. Caelan Doris (Ireland)

4. Grégory Alldritt (France)

3. Ardie Savea (New Zealand)

2 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa)

1. Antoine Dupont (France)