In camp with England ahead of the final fixture of the autumn series, George Ford speaks with LeicesterTigers.com about reaching a half century of Test appearances and looks ahead to lining up against Tigers team mates Matt Toomua and Tatafu Polota-Nau at Twickenham.
George Ford says it was a "special feeling" to lead England out in his 50th Test appearance last weekend.
The Tigers fly-half was handed the captaincy for the autumn international against Japan, which the home side won 35-15 after holding off a spirited Japanese side in front of an 81,000 strong crowd at HQ.
"It was a special feeling to lead the team out, a proud day for me and my family," said Ford.
"To do it with a great group of lads made it even better and in the end I was just happy we could get the win."
Ford made his international debut in March 2014 off the bench against Wales at Twickenham in a game that featured current club mates Tom Youngs and Jonny May and says playing just one "is special enough" but to make it a half century is an "amazing" feeling.
"It's unbelievable to reach 50," Ford said.
"It’s special enough playing one Test match, so to represent my country 50 times is amazing.
"I have loved every second of it since my debut against Wales and hopefully there is more to come."
The fly-half replaced Owen Farrell in his debut appearance and has since formed a competitive partnership with the Saracens No.10 as both play-making partners and substitutes for one another, which has included helping England to a run of 18 straight Test wins.
"I have loved every second of it since my debut against Wales and hopefully there is more to come."
George Ford
After a dominant display in the No.10 shirt last Saturday against Japan, with Farrell outside him at inside-centre when England looked most in control of the game, Ford is in line for a starting appearance against Australia in this weekend's final fixture of the autumn series.
If picked, Ford is likely to line-up opposite Tigers team Matt Toomua who was handed the fly-half spot by Wallabies coach Michael Cheika for their win over Italy last weekend and says going head-to-head with his good friend will be "fun" as the English side search for their best performance of the series.
"We're hoping for our best performance of the autumn ... I'm sure both sides will be doing everything they can to win." said Ford.
"It's going to be a tough challenge against the Wallabies , they are a dangerous team with brilliant players ... but it will be good fun to play against Matt [Toomua] and Taf [Polota-Nau] before catching up after."
