Strawbridge joins England as skills coach for Six Nations, Sinfield announces departure
Strawbridge was a skills consultant with the All Blacks, helping them to the final of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, having previously coached at North Harbour and Auckland and worked with New Zealand's highly successful under-20s team and then spending three years with Waikato.
"Andrew is another coach with a wealth of knowledge,” Borthwick told reporters. "He has worked extensively and successfully in Super Rugby and international rugby.
"He has an incredible reputation in player development and has helped a large number of players progress to be amongst the best in the world.
"His work around the contact area is incredibly highly regarded, ensuring teams have the quick ball needed to launch a threatening attack."
Incoming assistant coach Felix Jones, who joins the set-up having helped South Africa to back-to-back World Cup triumphs, will now be responsible for England’s defence with Kevin Sinfield moving to coaching individual skills and the kickers.
Richard Wigglesworth continues as attack coach and Tom Harrison remains in charge of the scrum.
“I am tremendously excited to start working with Felix who is a coach with an incredible reputation and with vast experience in international rugby," Borthwick said.
“With his background in Irish rugby and his wealth of knowledge operating in the southern hemisphere he will bring a different dimension to our coaching team.”
Meanwhile, Sinfield is set to leave his England assistant coaching role after the summer tour of Japan and New Zealand, Borthwick added.
Sinfield is a hugely respected part of the setup, not only as a coach - he worked with Borthwick at Leicester - and a vastly experienced former rugby league international but for his incredible running exploits raising millions of pounds for MND research in the name of his former Leeds teammate Rob Burrow.
"Kev's decided that longer-term he's going to head in a different direction away from the England rugby team," Borthwick told journalists in a briefing at Twickenham on Thursday.
"He's going to work with the team through the Six Nations and through the summer tour. Through this first 12 months, Kev's role and what he's added as we've reset the team, you can't overstate the value he's brought, what he's done and the relationships he's built.
“It's fantastic that he's continuing with the team through this period, to continue working with us and the players, helping the team in its next evolution. He will be working specifically on catch-pass skills with the kickers and goalkickers, which he does so very well."
England start their Six Nations campaign away to Italy on Febuary 3rd then host Wales, play away to Scotland and welcome Ireland before finishing off against France in Lyon on March 16th.
They finished fourth last year after managing two wins but following a dire series of warm-ups found some form to finish third in the World Cup.